'Age Is Irrelevant When You're In Love!'

Melanie Sykes has been in showbiz for 20 years, but it’s not been all glamour for the 47-year-old, who has had two divorces. In recent years she’s thrown herself into fitness and, with the body of a woman half her age, it’s no wonder she’s open to the idea of a toyboy…

- Julie Ann Trainor

Hi, Mel! How do you keep in such good shape?

I train. I do three, or sometimes five, days a week on average. I look after what I eat. I tend to do the Amelia Freer [plan]; she is a nutritionist. I cut out all dairy and alcohol. I’ve been doing that for ages and that has kept me really healthy.

Do you miss alcohol?

I don’t miss alcohol at all. I stopped last June. Keeping hydrated and getting enough sleep are the obvious tips. I need my sleep!

How much sleep do you get?

I’m happy with eight hours a night.

How are you finding co-parenting with your ex-husband [Daniel Caltagirone]?

We are not together any more, but we have complete solidarity on parenting.

You’ve been divorced twice. Have these experiences made you more wary when it comes to dating?