Since making her screen debut in 1982, Dawn French has become one of the country's best-loved actors, comedians and writers.
From her role as one half of the comedy duo French and Saunders to her lead role in the beloved sitcom The Vicar of Dibley, Dawn has firmly cemented her national treasure status. And her talents don't stop there, having also published a number of bestselling novels; most recently, 2020's Because Of You.
Now, in an exclusive new interview with Good Housekeeping, Dawn has opened up about her recent hair transformation, her inspirational mum and how she feels about returning to live comedy this year with a one-woman show.
"Well, the title is a little controversial," she says of her upcoming tour. "It’s called Dawn French Is A Huge Twat. I don’t know if that’s even printable, but I wanted to call it that because it’s true."
She describes the show as "an evening of me telling stories of times when I’ve been a bit of an idiot, where I’ve misunderstood or misheard something, or got something hideously wrong during my career."
"I’ll show people all these moments – when I’ve sent emails to people who really shouldn’t have seen them, for example – and how they played out in real life," she adds.
Over the past two years, Dawn has also undergone a hair transformation, having gone grey with a much shorter cut.
“The real trigger came during the lockdowns when I was dying my hair myself, and I just couldn’t be bothered to keep doing it, so I let my natural grey come through," she explains.
"I also cut some of it myself - to my hairdresser's alarm! It’s much shorter than I’m used to now and I do have certain ‘grrr’ moments when I’m going out and I don’t know how to style it - I would literally give my old hair 13 minutes of my time each day - but the plan is to grow it again like my old hairstyle.
"I’m curious to see what the bob might look like with a good strong grey.”
As part of Good Housekeeping's 100th anniversary celebrations, Dawn also reflected on the changes women have seen in the last century; the biggest of which, she thinks, has been contraception.
"I think an awful lot of things stem from that, because it gave women the freedom to have pleasure in their lives, but also to be in control of how their futures pan out,” she says.
But there are many changes Dawn would still like to see for women in the next 100 years, especially greater respect.
"There would be equal pay if women had respect, and you would be believed about abuse," she says. "Women deserve respect for so many reasons because we are mighty. We’re starting to be heard more – and that needs to continue.”
Dawn has worked with a number of inspirational women over the years, but when asked who has inspired her the most, she said it would have to be her mum, Felicity Roma.
"She was a pioneer when it came to changing the lives of young women with drug and alcohol issues, and she founded a recovery centre in Plymouth called Trevi House," Dawn explains.
"Alone as a widow from a very young age, she was strong and fearless. If I had a quarter of her strength, I’d be grateful.”
Read the full interview with Dawn French in the April 2022 issue of Good Housekeeping, on sale 24th February. It is available in all supermarkets and online at MagsDirect.
To book tickets to Dawn's new tour, visit dawnfrenchontour.com.
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