Melanie C Interview

The sporty superstar talks becoming a mum to adorable daughter Scarlet, playdates with the Spice kids and how she’ll be saying thank you to her mum this Mother's Day...

‘This campaign combines two of my favourite things in the world – my mum and the Olympics,’ Spice Girl Melanie C gushes of her decision to support P&G’s Thank You Mum campaign. Here, the sporty superstar talks becoming a mum to adorable daughter Scarlet, having playdates with the Spice kids, and how she’ll be saying thank you to her own mum this Mother's Day...

How has becoming a mum changed your life for the better? Having Scarlet has changed me in so many ways - she’s the light of my life. I’m really surprised at how much more confident I feel in myself and how courageous she’s made me - I really want her to be proud of me. Of course it’s hard and there’s really difficult times, but the overriding thing is what joy they bring to you. I have much more of an appreciation of my own mum since I’ve become a mother - and I probably don’t thank her enough!

And what has been the most challenging thing about having baby Scarlet? It’s been a huge challenge. With a newborn, you feel you’re just in survival mode for six months, getting to know your child, and getting to know yourself as a mum. You worry about if you’re doing the right thing, whether it’s teething or trying to get them to sleep, but it’s totally worth it, 100 per cent.

How do find juggling work and motherhood? It can be quite hard… It’s hard when you first go back to work, as the guilt of not being there is awful, but I think it’s also healthy for mums to have some time away. You appreciate your children so much more when you return, and being at home all the time can be very draining.

As we’re approaching Mother’s Day, what will you be doing to say thank you to your own mum this year? I love to spoil her. We both love food and cooking, and we love going out to eat, so I always take her to a nice restaurant. I took her to the Ivy one year, which she absolutely loved, but since Scarlet’s come along we go to slightly more child friendly places! I’ll definitely be booking somewhere nice for our Mother’s Day lunch.

We know you first as a Spice Girl, so now you all have children, do you meet up for playdates? What does Scarlet think of little Harper Beckham? Yes, absolutely. We got together, well four of us, as Melanie B wasn’t in town, earlier this year and had lunch and the kids all played together. It’s really lovely as they range quite a lot in age, so the older ones look after the younger ones, and the younger ones really enjoy playing together. It’s really nice to see - they’re very sweet.

Do you think the Spice children will stay in touch as they grow up? Us Spice Girls shared something really unique together and our children will be in a very unique situation as well. For, us we really feel like no one else went through what we went through, and it’ll be the same for our children. If they have any difficulties Spice children growing up, they have each other. It was great having them with us when we last toured, because they diffuse any situation.

Talking of the Spice Girls, there have been lots of rumours about what you might be planning for the Diamond Jubilee this year. Can you spill the beans? The honest truth? We were approached about doing the Diamond Jubilee concert and we were all very honoured. It was a wonderful thing to be asked to do, specially as it’s going to take place in front of Buckingham Palace, but unfortunately, not all of us girls feel like it’s something that they’d be comfortable doing. We have to respect each other’s wishes.

Finally, as part of the campaign, P&G are giving away amazing tickets to the Olympics. What are you most looking forward to about the events this summer? I’ve always really loved sport, and growing up I remember being glued to the TV every four years to watch it, especially the athletics and the gymnastics. To have it here in our capital city is a once in a lifetime thing, and we’ve got so many great medal hopes this year - being on your home turf, it gives you that little advantage. I can’t wait!

WATCH Mel in action here... 

Melanie C is working with P&G to encourage you to say, ‘Thank you, Mum’ to win family tickets to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. To enter, visit youtube.com/pg