Former Loose Women panellist Carol McGiffin has playfully criticised Richard Madeley, sharing observations about the presenter during their encounters in the south of France. The two were once ITV co-stars before Carol left the afternoon panel show in 2023, and both own properties in the popular region.
The 66-year-old lives there permanently with her husband and has crossed paths with Richard when he visits his holiday home with wife Judy Finnigan. Their encounters have given the broadcaster plenty to say about her famous neighbour.
Teasing Richard's Routine
Speaking to Best Magazine's Siobhan Wykes on the Suddenly Single podcast, Carol recalled spotting the Good Morning Britain presenter in France, where she made a playful remark about his habits. After Siobhan mentioned seeing Richard sitting outside reading the papers, Carol quipped: "He sits there sunning himself like he's not brown enough."
"Yeah but he's not starry like that, I mean he just sits out on the pavement with his newspaper and his coffee and if people walk past...," Siobhan replied, before Carol added another observation: "In the same T-shirt everyday, not that I notice things like that."
Forgetful Encounters
Despite the teasing, Carol insisted Richard was "really nice", although she questioned the point of owning a property in the south of France if he rarely spent time there. She also recalled an encounter where the presenter appeared to have forgotten she lived in the area permanently.
Carol said: "We saw him a couple of times [in the south of France] this year and I went up to him and went, 'Hey Richard' and he was like, 'Oh, hi, how long are you down for?'. I'm like, 'Yeah I live here, I told you that about a thousand times'."
Richard's Fall and Carol's Move
Richard's time in France took an unfortunate turn last year when he suffered a fall that left him with a broken wrist. Appearing on Good Morning Britain with his wrist in a plaster cast, he explained: "It's a double fracture of the wrist. I was walking quite quickly down a steep pavement in France on Friday, and the pavement was loose. It flipped up, and it flipped me forward."
Recalling the moment, he continued: "I thought, am I going to win or will gravity win? And gravity won. I hit the ground hard. So yeah I've got a double fracture and we'll see how it goes."
While Richard and Judy have enjoyed their French getaway for more than two decades, Carol made the south of France her permanent home in 2015, following her recovery from breast cancer. She continued travelling to London for Loose Women before leaving the show in 2023.
Reflecting on her departure in an interview with OK! Magazine, Carol admitted both the commute and the programme had become increasingly difficult: "I used to love flying back to London to do Loose Women, but travel got more difficult and Loose Women got more difficult... I don't miss it at all. It was once a great job. It doesn't really have many alternative opinions now."
She added that watching the show occasionally reinforces her belief that leaving was right: "And I do watch it occasionally to remind myself that I made the right decision. I don't regret leaving - I don't fit in there any more. Someone, somewhere will be offended by absolutely everything."
