Radio host, TV presenter and children's author Lucy Kennedy chats to Elle Gordon about her new documentary series, chipping away at her doer-upper forever home and why she could never have guests on Living with Lucy who she fancies.
Lucy Kennedy is moisturising her legs while we talk. A big pot of stuff is open on the table beside us, as we sit in the lounge of Dublin’s Gibson Hotel. As a result, my questions are spluttering out between laughs. She is exactly how she seems to be when you see her on screen or listen to her on the radio: absolutely gas.
With her latest children’s book, The Friendship Fairies Go to Sea having just hit shelves, she tells me, "When I hear that people buy the books, I am always kind of shocked and so grateful. It is such a lovely feeling. As much as I adore radio and TV, there is something about having your name in print. For me, I didn’t do well in my Leaving Cert, and then I repeated and didn’t do any better, so it’s a bit of a moment of, 'Hey, you can still write a children’s book successfully.’"
Was Lucy a hoot from the get-go? "I have always been slightly bonkers. Always. I laugh my way through life, and I think that is possibly the secret. I grew up in a very happy home. I was one of three little girls. I think the middle child is always quirky and different. I was your typical naughty little girl with pigtails, mucky knees and always in trouble in school. But I was shy, would you believe? I loved people but there was always a bit of a shyness there."
What was she like as a teen? "Well, I thought I was wild as a teenager, but looking back I think I was a bit of a nerd. I was a bit of craic and very sporty, but I wasn’t one of the cool girls."
Hard to believe when you see her now, cool as a cucumber, with her many accomplishments, and her gorgeous house. The house, in Sandycove in south Dublin, is a recent enough buy, is Lucy and her husband Richie Governey’s forever home, which they bought in 2021. I wonder what her décor style is?
"I have gone beachy, kind of by default. It’s an old house so there are holes in floorboards and there is the smell of the sea. When we found our house, I fell in love with it. It was in very bad condition, but you could see that it was once beautiful. We are still renovating. I think when you are doing up an old house, it is kind of a thing of weighing up priorities: ‘holiday in Lanzarote’ or ‘windows’, ‘takeaway’ or ‘paint’.
"We are always chipping away at it, but I love it. It is around the corner from where I grew up, so I love being able to say to our children, ‘This is where Mummy walked to school.’ I had such a happy life there so Richie and I both wanted them to have that kind of childhood. The day we moved in, it was like this weight lifted off my shoulders."
Does she have a lovely lifestyle by the sea? "Yes. We are trying to encourage our children to have that kind of lifestyle, time at the pier and the sea. Although, I still refuse to wear a Dryrobe; I haven’t become one of them just yet! We bought well, our house certainly wasn’t expensive, and it’s a complete doer- upper. It means that I need to have 56 jobs, as does Richie. You have to work very hard for it, but we love it."
Speaking of work, her mornings are anything but peaceful, with The Colm and Lucy Breakfast Show on Classic Hits Radio. As soon as I mention it, Lucy lights up. "I adore it. I adore Colm Hayes. He is a pleasure to work with. We are on air together every weekday, and then I go off and do my other jobs, like my book and being a Mum."
Lucy’s youngest, Jess, just started in Junior Infants a few weeks ago. Lucy says: "She loves it. She packs her lunches the night before and we say ‘Jess, you are going to be home at one, you don’t need that much food.’ She has three brioches, a ham wrap, some pineapple, crisps, a flask, and it’s like, ‘Jess, you are only there for little break!’ It is a full blown three-star picnic.
"It was emotional on day one. I took the morning off work and was standing at the gate going, ‘My baby’ telling anyone who would listen, that she was starting school. Off she went and she never looked back. I thought she would, but she didn’t. She is a free spirit. I can see her in Australia, working on the beach, with hairy armpits, having a piña colada. She doesn’t worry about a thing. And I would never worry about her. She just has a very strong and gentle personality."
What about her other two? "Jack is 12. Him and Rich have been having lots of boys’ time whereas I am just that embarrassing Mom. But he’s still my baby boy and he is a brilliant big brother. His sisters wreck his head, they really do. It’s quite a girlie house, but he loves them."
And Holly? "Holly is me. I gave birth to myself. I literally birthed myself! She is hysterical. I can see her owning 15 dogs, maybe working as a painter, and living in New York. She is very creative."
Is being a Mum the best thing she ever did? "Without a shadow of a doubt. I love it. I have ups and downs like everybody else. I worry about money. I worry about work sometimes, I worry about health. I worry about my parents… I have the same worries as everybody else, but I feel that children are a great leveller. No matter what happens, no matter how bad the news is, or the day is, once I know they are OK, I can cope. Once they are happy, so am I."
How is husband Richie? "Rich is great. Long suffering Rich. We are 23 years together, so he has been trying to dump me for 23 years! We are now married 13 years. I love him. He is brilliant. He is the Yin to my Yang. He is normal. He thinks I am completely bonkers, but he is the funniest person that I know. He cracks me up. He really is my best friend. I am very lucky."
Lucy has lived with people from all walks of life in her eponymous TV show, Living with Lucy, the next season of which airs in February 2023. She has delved into the nooks and crannies behind the closed doors of celebrity homes. "We think I have lived with 60 people so far. I love it as much as I did 10 years ago. It looks like I will be moving in with Katie Price in a few weeks. And I am determined to get Daniel and Majella. I love Majella, she is the coolest cat."
What about Dermot Bannon? "All the people I fancy I can’t live with. I fancy Pat Kenny. Love Pat. I fancy Enda Kenny. Most Kennys really. I fancy Pierce Morgan. I fancy Diarmuid Gavin so anyone that I fancy won’t let me in because apparently, I am creepy!"
Her new show, Lucy Investigates, is a four-part documentary series airing soon. Without giving too much away she says, "It discusses topics ranging from Irish people’s love lives to female travellers, to cosmetic surgery and social media. It is right up my street and it’s out this week!"
The Friendship Fairies Go to Sea by Lucy Kennedy is published by Gill Books
