Vernon Kay reveals Christmas plans with Tess Daly and two daughters: “I’m lastminute.com!”
Vernon Kay is feeling festive! The BBC Radio 2 host is a massive fan of Christmas: “I’d have Christmas every week if I could, to be honest, it’s brilliant,” he tells HELLO!. A busy man this time of year, Vernon, 49, completed a 115-mile ultramarathon for Children In Need last month, and as of December, he’s the newest ambassador for the British Heart Foundation.
Catching up with HELLO! at the charity’s Heart Hero Awards in London, the father-of-two shared his plans for the holiday season, and he’s not exactly organised. With Tess Daly and daughters – Phoebe and Amber – to buy for, we asked Vernon if he’d sorted his Christmas shopping, and the presenter couldn’t help but smile.
“No, I haven’t. I am absolutely lastminute.com – one hundred percent,” he admitted. “I kind of like that though. I like the rush and I like the excitement. I think everyone’s in the same boat where it’s a bit panicky and they realise that Christmas is just around the corner. But, I also think if you do it early you miss that buzz of Christmas.
“I like walking down and seeing the lights – I like all the sensory experiences of Christmas.”
As for what the festive period will entail, Vernon told HELLO!: “Same as always! Lots of family, lots of food, beverages, lots of party games – Uno. Cranking the heating up a little bit, and just get cosy on the sofa. It’s been like that for many, many years.”
In the lead-up to Christmas, Vernon’s got a lot going on. As well as hosting his namesake radio show, the 49-year-old is also embracing his role as a British Heart Foundation ambassador – an honour which he doesn’t take lightly.
“I think after the first time I hosted this event [The Heart Hero Awards], I realised that heart conditions and cardiac issues happen more regularly than you assume, and then you see the science and the research that the British Heart Foundation Fund helps with,” he explained.
“As soon as I did the first [Heart Hero] awards, I heard all the heartwarming stories, and the people we awarded awards to [shows] it can happen to anyone. I think it’s my fifth year [hosting the Heart Hero Awards] though, something like that. That’s why I keep doing it because it just means so much to so many people and I think it’s an important message to get across.”
MORE: Everything Vernon Kay has said about daughters with Tess Daly – Phoebe, 19, and Amber, 14
In his new role, Vernon joins a slew of dedicated celebrity ambassadors, including Pippa Middleton and Sarah Ferguson.