Kitty Chrisp
Published December 11, 2025 7:47pm
Updated December 11, 2025 7:48pm
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Olivia Attwood wasn’t happy with her 2024 Woman’s Hour interview, she’s revealed (Picture: Joe Maher/Getty Images for BFC)
Olivia Attwood has finally lifted the lid on what she thought of her BBC Woman’s Hour interview with Emma Barnett last year, which made headlines when the host told the Love Island star she looked older than her age. Ouch.
Loose Women star Olivia, 34, was on the Radio 4 show in January 2024 to promote her ITV series The Price of Perfection, in which she investigates the murky world of cosmetic procedures.
But while Olivia was keen to investigate the industry as a whole, journalist Emma, 40, was more focused on Olivia’s part to play in the story, as she’s put herself in it as the presenter of the show.
The broadcaster grilled Olivia on whether she perpetuates a culture of cosmetically enhanced beauty standards, as she’s had two breast augmentations, Botox and filler, while also telling her guest that she looked older than 31 because of the work.
Speaking on her own podcast Olivia’s House today, Olivia reflected on the interview a year on for the first time, and summed it up as ‘a 15-minute psychological assault’.
Olivia called the interview a ‘horrible’ experience (Picture: @thisisoliviashouse)
Emma Barnett told Olivia she looked older than 31 because of her cosmetic work (Picture: Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images)
Asked who the ‘top three w***ers’ she’s met in the industry are, Olivia said: ‘I’ve been pretty lucky, I have to say. I saw something on Instagram the other day and it gave me PTSD, trip down memory lane.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever spoken about it before. I’m pretty thick-skinned as you guys know so it takes quite a lot for me to be ruffled, I’ve done GMB with Piers Morgan. I’ve been on with people who are tough. I like an interview when someone is tough with me.’
Without naming Emma or Woman’s Hour, Olivia continued: ‘I had an experience with a female host and it was really one of the worst experiences I’ve probably had in an interview, because I felt like she didn’t want me there.
‘I don’t mind being put on the spot. I was meant to be promoting my documentary and everything I’d learnt about the [cosmetics] industry, and she very much wanted to make it about me and what I looked like.
‘She said, “So you, what have you had done?” I was a bit like, “Wow”. I am open to it, but I’m talking about the cosmetic industry as a whole.
‘She was like, “Can I say something to you?” This was live on air, she goes: “I don’t know what you were trying to achieve because you look a lot older with what you’ve done to yourself.”
Reflecting on the moment, Olivia said: ‘It felt very tonally wrong for a show that’s supposed to be a safe space for women, and uplifting women. It was just a really horrible experience. It stayed with me for a little while. When I left that studio, I sat in silence for 20 minutes. I was like, what just actually happened?’
@bbcsoundsOlivia Attwood on ‘The Price of Perfection’ 💭 #womanshour #BBCSounds #oliviaattwood #cosmeticsurgery
♬ original sound – BBC Sounds
Olivia added that Jodie Comer was on the episode too, and while the broadcaster didn’t stand up to see her off, she did get up to greet the superstar actress – who actually complimented Olivia on her shows as they passed.
‘I thought, well if I’m good enough for Jodie Comer, I’m happy,’ Olivia said.
In the interview, broadcast in January 2024, Emma kicked things off by asking Olivia: ‘Because you’ve fronted this series, what treatments and surgeries have you had?’
Olivia responded with her various procedures, explaining that her own experience partly was the reason she wanted to do the project in the first place.
Emma came back with: ‘I’m going to say this as politely as I can but I’m not known for mincing my words, but I can see that you’ve had work in your face. Isn’t the point not to be able to see it?’
To that, Olivia explained it depends on your desired outcome, and she’s been a victim of ‘trends’ before: getting work done because it’s in fashion at the time, and regretting it when it falls out.
‘That means several years down the line I had these oversized breast implants, I was in discomfort. I had to go for my second augmentation to reduce them. It’s a trend we see a lot with young women, unfortunately our bodies are always up for discussion in the sense of a trend,’ she explained.
Asked by Barnett if she was a ‘victim’, Olivia responded that was actually ‘too strong’ of a word, but she is a result of beauty standards perpetuated online and in the media.
How to stay safe when booking a cosmetic prodedure
According to the NHS, you should not pay for a procedure until you’ve had a consultation to make sure it’s right for you.
You should also avoid: group treatments, or events involving alcohol; treatment vouchers sold online on group discount or voucher sites; mobile services where procedures are performed in places such as private homes or hotels; and practitioners who only advertise on social media.
How to check the person is qualified?
The NHS advises:
You can see if someone is qualified by checking they’re registered with a suitable specialist association and trained in the right procedures.
All independent hospitals and clinics that provide cosmetic surgery in England must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Check here for hospitals and here for clinics quality.
Only registered doctors can perform cosmetic surgery in England.
You should check if someone is a registered doctor or surgeon on the General Medical Council online register. Some surgeons have a cosmetic surgery certificate from the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS). Check here.
Some surgeons are also members of professional associations, which make sure they have the relevant qualifications, experience and insurance to perform particular types of surgery. Check BAAPS or BAPRAS.
Pressed on whether she’s ‘feeding’ the issue for people by continuing to get cosmetic procedures, Olivia said: ‘Yes for sure. The documentary is looking at the industry as a whole, the cross section of what people are having done, their motivation, the spending…’
Barnett then cut her off, saying: ‘We’re not going through the documentary, people can watch it on ITV. But you do find that for some women they think it will earn them more money, if they have an Only Fans account, through to very young women indeed who are doing it because that’s what they think they should look like.’
Olivia said: ‘The age of which girls especially are looking at cosmetic enhancements now was shocking to me.
‘Do I perpetuate that culture, in the way I look and my social media? Possibly, yes. But I think by being honest about it… It’s a double-edged sword, you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
‘If I were to deny – many people in my industry choose to go down that road – I think you’re also creating an unachievable beauty standard, so young people don’t understand how their body looks this way, or that way.’
@itv‘My lesson I’ve learnt, and I hope for people watching this, would to not be doing anything surgical or injectable for fashion.’ Step Inside The Scenes of Olivia Attwood’s latest documentary, PriceOfPerfection 💉
♬ original sound – ITVX – ITV
While the journalist said it’s ‘good to be honest,’ she asked Olivia to confirm her age, before asking her: ‘Why don’t you stop?’
‘I am quite happy with the way I look. I’ve had botox and skin treatments the last few years. It’s something that makes me feel good. I’m happy to do it. I’m an adult woman. It’s my decision. I go down the correct path,’ Olivia said.
After talking about the dangers around the marketing language of ‘preventative botox’ – which attempts to get young people in their 20s to sign up – Barnett said: ‘I think you look a bit older than 31.’
To that Olivia laughed nervously and said: ‘Thank you.’
Backtracking, Barnett said Olivia actually seemed mature and doesn’t look ‘old’.
‘But because there’s now something associated with how people look [with cosmetic work] you definitely don’t look younger than 31, which is what I’m saying,’ the host said, as Olivia responded: ‘I don’t think I’m trying to look younger than 31.’
Olivia was promoting her documentary series and wasn’t happy when the conversation pivoted to her looks (Picture: Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
After Barnett called Olivia an ‘incredibly beautiful woman’ – seemingly wondering why she’s getting work done, if not to be younger – the reality star said she was just trying to be ‘a version of myself.’
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‘You look phenomenal, people love how you look, you’ve got a great sense of style. You’ve put yourself in this story, so you must’ve had feedback about, why do you keep doing it and your role that you’re playing in it?’ Emma pressed.
Responding, Olivia said: ‘I think that as women unfortunately the way we look is always the first thing that’s commented on. If you’ve had tweakments or not, people are always going to have an opinion.’
Asked if there is a way back from this road we’re going down, Olivia said: ‘I think we’ve been judging women on the way they look since the beginning of time.
‘This is just an evolution of that. Cosmetic treatments aren’t going anywhere, but if by making this show I can help educate younger women to not make the mistakes I made, then I think that’s helpful.’
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