Scarlett Moffatt’s most ropy Christmas gift was jar of pickled onions at panto: ‘I thought everyone liked me!’-Andrew Williams-Entertainment – Metro

Scarlett Moffatt says the best Christmas gift ever was her dad returning home from hospital (Picture: John Phillips/Getty)

TV presenter Scarlett Moffatt, 32, found fame on reality show Gogglebox. She is an ambassador for the Samaritans and is currently presenting BBC Sounds show Scarlett Moffatt Wants To Believe.

What does Christmas mean to you?

I feel like the whole of December is like a warm hug – it’s all about family and friends and love. I love the whole month.

Do you have a real tree?

We’ve had our fake tree for four years. It just seems more sustainable than getting a real tree every year. We could have it for 20 years. And we have a chihuahua who eats everything, so it seems a bit safer.

Do you like a lot of Christmas decorations or do you keep things minimal?

The tackier the better. I’ve got baubles I made in primary school. Wherever I go I collect a bauble. I’ve got hundreds of them and I squeeze them all on the tree.

One of my favourites is an apple with my name and my sister’s name on – I got it in New York when I took her there for her tenth birthday. And one from my first trip to Paris with my boyfriend – it’s a little Minnie and Mickey Mouse.

Scarlett with her mum Betty and dad Mark when they were on Gogglebox (Picture: Channel 4)

Favourite Christmas songs?

Feliz Navidad by José Feliciano – you can’t help but dance to it. And All I Want For Christmas by Mariah Carey, that always gets people in the mood, and I like Silent Night. And it’s sad Michael Bublé only gets defrosted in December. I’d have him all year round.

What’s the best Christmas present you’ve ever received?

When I was 11, my dad had skin cancer and we didn’t know if he’d be home for Christmas. He had to have a graft and 100 stitches. But he came back on Christmas Eve and all his treatment was finished and he was OK. That was the best Christmas present ever.

Scarlett with her mum, dad, and boyfriend Scott (Picture: Nicky J Sims/Getty)

What’s the most disappointing Christmas present you’ve ever received?

A jar of pickled onions. I got that in a Secret Santa when I was doing panto. I was Fairy Godmother in Cinderella. And I thought everyone liked me!

Did you ever repeatedly ask for a particular present that you never received?

No, maybe it’s because I was an only child until I was 16 when my little sister was born, but I was quite spoilt. I’d sit there with the Argos catalogue and circle everything. Furbies, Cabbage Patch dolls, Mr Frosty – I got it all. I can’t believe it. I must have been a well-behaved kid.

The cult 1990s toy, the Furby, didn’t have an ‘off’ button (Picture: Getty)

Do you have turkey?

Yes, we have a turkey and also a joint of beef. And you need pigs in blankets, sprouts, parsnips and red cabbage – that makes the difference between a Sunday roast and Christmas dinner. If you’re feeling really fancy get some honey-glazed carrots – things you’d never get usually.

What do you like most and least about Christmas?

My favourite thing is my nanny always does a Christmas quiz. She does the questions and then participates in it and pretends she can’t remember the answers – but whoever is on her team wins. That’s my favourite part. Boxing Day is probably my least favourite – I never know what to do with myself. I sit there thinking ‘What do I do now it’s over?’ I eat my own body weight in chocolate.

Were you in a school nativity?

I was either an angel or narrator every year. I wanted to be Mary but it never happened. It was always a girl called Jill. I still bump into her. I think it’s because she was cute and I had a monobrow and the school didn’t want Mary to have a monobrow. One year a lass called Georgina got to be Mary but that was only because Jill was poorly.

Do you prefer Christmas or New Year’s Eve?

Christmas. With New Year’s Eve you do the countdown and then you go home. It’s a massive anti-climax. The other year we just stayed in, watched Jools Holland and got drunk. As soon as it was 12:01 I went to bed.

Pianist Jools Holland is a stalwart of New Year’s Eve entertainment on TV (Picture: PA)

What’s the worst New Year’s Day hangover you’ve had?

Last year. I went to Proud Cabaret in London. Duncan James was in the show and got my boyfriend on stage to get a lapdance from Marilyn Monroe. We just kept drinking and drinking. I knew I was bad because the next day I couldn’t even stomach a Greggs sausage roll. I had to do panto the next night and it did not feel great being a Fairy Godmother spinning on stage.

You’re a Samaritans ambassador – is it a busy time for them?

We’re encouraging people to talk to their friends and family if they think someone is having a difficult time or if they’re acting differently over Christmas – if they’re more withdrawn or if it’s the opposite, if the person is usually subdued and now they’re out drinking all the time.

People are really struggling with the cost of living crisis. If you’re feeling lonely or sad, anybody can call, you don’t have to wait until you’re ‘sad enough’, it’s better to talk about it before you get in a really dark place.

Scarlett Moffatt Wants To Believe Christmas Special is available on BBC Sounds

MORE : Five hacks to avoid a Christmas dinner meltdown

MORE : Mimi Webb: All I want for Christmas is… to feel at home

Entertainment – MetroRead More