Lisa Faulkner, actress and celebrity chef, is known just as much for her ability to whip up a quick, simple dish on a Saturday as she is for her dramatic chops, which she's shown off in the likes of hit BBC medical drama Holby City and the latest Harlan Coben adaptation on Netflix, Missing You. Away from the screen, however, the 53-year-old has recently embarked on a series of ventures, including a five-part podcast series partnered with pet food brand Bella + Duke, where she dives into the benefits of raw feeding, pet nutrition and pet well-being with a series of experts.
Speaking exclusively to HELLO!, Lisa gave a glimpse into the family's changing dynamic, opening up about how Rory, the family's adorable miniature schnauzer, is like the glue of the household – not just for her and her husband, chef John Torode, but her and ex Chris Coghill's adopted daughter, Billie, who is now 19 and incredibly "busy."
© Eddie Judd Photography"Billie will come in from a mad day, or she'll be panicked," Lisa began, "and Rory is the one that she sits with. [Rory] puts her head on your lap and just calms you. Every day, we wake up and she's the first one everyone greets."
Lisa's relationship with Billie has evolved
Lisa's daughter, Billie, is an only child, and the doting mother opened up about how their dynamic has changed since Billie became an adult. Though the 19-year-old still lives with her parents, she has an incredibly "busy" life, which means that Lisa "doesn't see her a huge amount."
The Holby City star explained: "She's so busy either working or travelling, which is what she wants to do at the moment. She saves up more, and goes, and saves up for the next trip, then she comes back home, and I'm like, 'Yay, you're home! We can watch Gilmore Girls, we can have tea, we can have chocolate'. She is my daughter and my friend: the relationship changes, of course it does, and I feel so lucky to have her in my life, though I know she'll fly the nest eventually."
For Lisa, her daughter being an only child makes the relationship even more unique: "As an only child, you are your parents' one and only, and Billie knows that. Me and her dad are very hands-on and chatty, and she speaks to us both all the time. We have our WhatsApp group with the three of us. It's lovely to still have her here, but the thought of her at 19… it's a funny age. You're still young: an adult in one way and, in another, really not. It's nice seeing how kids change, how they have different opinions and outlooks, and seeing how much we can learn from them."
Lisa's special relationship with her dog, Rory
Lisa is currently promoting her podcast series with Bella + Duke, in which she discusses pet nutrition with a series of experts. On what drove her to embark on this new venture, she said: "It was my quest for knowledge: I wanted to know how best to feed my dog, and this campaign came at exactly the right time. Rory is my fur baby, my second daughter, and she was having a few issues." After hearing that people she spoke to had changed to raw feeding, Lisa decided to do the same, and learned from a range of experts about how pet nutrition affects gut health, even in pets.
© Eddie Judd PhotographyThe John & Lisa's Weekend Kitchen host completely dotes over Rory, calling her a "little person whisperer" who "meets every day with such enthusiasm". She added: "I think it's exactly how I should be living. Nothing matters, she's there wanting to go for a walk, she gets me out. We walk every single day, she's my little joy."
