LOOSE Women star Kaye Adams admitted that she lied about her age for decades.
The TV star also admitted that she even kept up the lie with her children.
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Kaye Adams admitted that she lied about her real age for over a decadeCredit: Rex
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The star celebrated her 60th birthday in style in SpainCredit: Instagram
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She embraced the real number after a pivotal moment with her daughterCredit: Rex
Kaye is known for her appearances on the ITV daytime panel show Loose Women and her show on BBC Radio Scotland.
She celebrated her 60th birthday two years ago with her family on a luxurious beach in Spain.
However, while she wanted to greet the milestone in style, that was not always the case.
It turns out that she hid her real age from some members of her family, saying that revealing her true age was “unthinkable”.
Writing in the Daily Mail, Kaye admitted: “Because for most of my life being open about my age had been unthinkable.
“Fortunately Ian, who knew full well how old I am, is incredibly laid back and just shrugged off what could easily amount to an insult in some men’s eyes.
“I, too, believed my behaviour was harmless, something many women did in a society that tries to write us off once we reach a ‘certain age’.”
However, Kaye, 62, also admitted that she was so insecure about the issue, she also lied to her children about how old she was.
“Since my 30s I had dodged, deflected or outright lied when the subject came up – even to my own children, Charly, now 23, and Bonnie, 18.” she admitted.
“In fact, for years they believed I was a whole decade younger than I actually was.”
Watch as Kaye Adams breaks silence on Loose Women cuts
“I’d never given Charly a specific date of birth, but I had claimed her dad – my partner Ian – was ten years my senior, when actually we were both born in 1962.”
A pivotal moment
The former I’m A Celebrity campmate revealed that there was a specific incident that made her reveal the truth.
She said that her eldest daughter got into a fight with her best friend which forced Kaye to finally give out the real number.
“But then one day Charly, then aged ten, arrived home from school mortified after an argument with her best friend,” she wrote.
Regular Loose Women panellists
Katie Piper – Former Strictly Come Dancing star, activist, model and author
Sunetra Sarker – A former Strictly Come Dancing star, and known for her role in Casualty
Kaye Adams – Scottish journalist and one of the original Loose Women
Christine Lampard – ITV presenter
Ruth Langsford – Presented Loose Women on and off since 1999
Jane Moore – Sun columnist and former I’m A Celebrity contestant
Coleen Nolan – Became known for her family girl band called The Nolans and went on to compete on Celeb Big Brother
Nadia Sawalha – Former EastEnders star and Celebrity MasterChef winner
Stacey Solomon – Known for her reality show Sort Your Life Out and winning series 10 of I’m A Celeb
Janet Street-Porter – A journalist and president of the Ramblers’ Association
Brenda Edwards – Came fourth on The X Factor and went on to become a pop star and act in hit musicals such as Hairspray
Charlene White – Lead presenter at ITV News London
Kelle Bryan – Former EastEnders star and was in girl group Eternal alongside her sisters. Also starred in Hollyoaks
Olivia Attwood – Love Island star who joined the cast of The Only Way Is Essex
Frankie Bridge – Participated in Strictly Come Dancing and came third on I’m A Celeb in 2021
Judi Love – A stand up comedian and radio presenter, who has also made a variety of TV appearances in shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, Celebrity MasterChef, and Taskmaster
Linda Robson – Played iconic character Tracey Stubbs in Birds Of A Feather
Denise Welch – A soap queen, she starred in Coronation Street, Waterloo Road and Hollyoaks. Also the mother of Matt Healy, the lead singer of pop rock group the 1975
Gloria Hunniford – TV presenter who’s appeared on The Masked Singer and Strictly
Penny Lancaster – Model who is married to Rod Stewart
Dame Kelly Holmes – Double Olympic gold medallist in the 800m and 1500m
Myleene Klass – Member of pop group Hear’Say and classically trained musician
Ayda Field – American actress who is married to Robbie Williams
Sue Cleaver – Known for playing Eileen Grimshaw on the ITV soap opera Coronation Street
Kelly Brook – Model who found fame on The Big Breakfast with Johnny Vaughan
Mariella Frostrup – British-Norwegian journalist and presenter
“The girls had been talking about their mums and Charly had said we were the same age – both 39 – only for her friend to whip out her phone, Google me, and declare she’d been lying.
“Charly was so upset she convinced herself the internet must be wrong. I hated knowing my silly fib had left her defending me against the truth.”
She added: It felt like I’d crossed a line. That, plus the absurdity of locking myself out of Facebook because I couldn’t remember which fake birthday I’d used, told me it was time to stop.
“I owed it to her and to myself to start being honest.”
For most of my life being open about my age had been unthinkable.
Kaye Adams
The moment of truth
Kaye opened up on the very moment that she told her daughter and she has not looked back since.
The Strictly Come Dancing contestant explained: “So after Charly’s fight with her friend, I took her for hot chocolate at our favourite cafe.
“Somewhere between the marshmallows and the cream, I dropped in what I imagined was a harmless, funny confession: my next birthday would be my 50th, not my 40th.
“Mummy was 49, not 39 as I’d told her I was. I thought Charly would find my fib as amusing as I’d found Granny’s.
ITV’s daytime TV schedule changes in full
Good Morning Britain will be extended by 30 minutes to run from 6am to 9.30am daily.
Lorraine will run from 9.30am-10am, on a seasonal basis for 30 weeks of the year.
During the weeks Lorraine is not on air, Good Morning Britain will run from 6am to 10am.
This Morning will remain in its 10am-12.30pm slot on weekdays throughout the year.
Loose Women will be in the 12.30-1.30pm slot, again on a seasonal basis for 30 weeks of the year.
The changes will take effect from January 2026.
“Instead she stared down at her drink and said nothing. I could see she was upset so I changed the subject, but inside I was rattled.
“I’d always thought of myself as strong and forthright, yet I’d fallen prey to society’s negative messages around older women.”
“That cafe confession aged 49 signified a clean break in the sense that I never lied to Charly or Bonnie about my age again.”
TV was the reason
The former Channel 5 panelist revealed that one of the reasons behind the lie was because she felt pressure from the industry.
“My TV career began when I was 22 and I enjoyed being the youngest among my peers; being ‘ahead of the game’ felt like my trump card,” Kaye admitted.
I had claimed my partner Ian was ten years my senior, when actually we were both born in 1962
Kaye Adams
“But by the time I was in my 30s and surrounded by a new bevvy of bright young things, I’d already begun to feel a bit past it.
“Society reinforces that message constantly, particularly for women in the public eye.
“There’s this sense the moment you hit a certain age, you risk being replaced by someone younger – no matter your talent.”
She added: “Pretending to be ten years younger soon became a habit – one I got away with thanks to vague answers, Ian’s laid back nature meaning he never outed me, and the fact that challenging someone’s age isn’t really the done thing.
“I have always looked after myself through diet, exercising and taking care of my skin, which I hoped would help me get away with shaving a few years off.
“I have also had fillers in the past, though nothing since I turned 60.”
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Kaye admitted that she felt pressure to lie about her age because of the industryCredit: Rex
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She said an argument her daughter had with her friend forced her to reveal the truthCredit: Alamy
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The Loose Women star now embraces her true age after decades in showbizCredit: PA
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She admitted that although she has had fillers in the past, she has not had a single injection since she turned 60
