Holly Willoughby admits she sometimes has an “disproportionately angry” reaction when her husband, Dan Baldwin, asks her harmless questions.
The former This Morning presenter, who celebrates her 44th birthday today, has spoken out about struggling with “micro controls” which can lead to increased “anxiety and sensitivity”.
These feelings were captured in her book Reflections, where she recounts an instance when her husband’s negative comment on a TV show she was watching irked her more than it should have, the Mirror reports.
She discusses this particular brand of irritability in her memoir, writing: “One of the problems with micro controls is that they are insidious; they are often opinions we have internalised without realising, and it’s so hard to point at them, to call them out. This means our anxiety and sensitivity about them is triggered in other ways by something that seems quite small and insignificant.”
She continued: “For example, if I’m watching TV and my husband suddenly asks, ‘Why are you watching this s***? ‘, it will spark something deep inside and I will get disproportionately angry about it.
“I think it’s because all these other screws of control and of judgement have been tightened in ways that I am not always conscious of, and actually, a really small, unimportant thing like this sets me off.”
Holly believes it’s crucial to reflect on “what the situation represents” rather than the actual events when she feels irritated. She interprets a “flippant” remark about the television as an attempt at “someone trying to control” her.
The Dancing on Ice presenter acknowledges her concerns about control in her life, which she recognises as an area for personal growth. Holly and husband Dan, who tied the knot in 2017, are parents to three children: Harry, Belle, and Chester.
The couple first crossed paths when Dan was producing Ministry of Mayhem, a show co-hosted by Holly and Stephen Mulhern. Dan’s production credits include work on Celebrity Juice, Through the Keyhole, and Virtually Famous.
The duo reportedly purchased their initial home together back in 2006 and celebrated their wedding reception at Amberley Castle in West Sussex, with Fearne Cotton serving as a bridesmaid and Dermot O’Leary among the groomsmen.
Holly rose to fame during the noughties with Ministry of Mayhem, later rebranded as Holly and Stephen’s Saturday Showdown.
In 2006, she began presenting Dancing on Ice alongside Philip Schofield, a role she continues nearly two decades on. Holly has also featured in a variety of popular programmes, including Celebrity Juice, The Voice UK, and the Surprise, Surprise revival and most notably presented This Morning on ITV from 2009 to 2023.