Clare Balding’s Journey to a More Present Life
Clare Balding, the well-known presenter and broadcaster, has shared her aspirations of slowing down and being more ‘present’ at home with her wife, Alice Arnold. This desire comes after a 30-year career in broadcasting that has seen her become a familiar face on British television.
Starting her career as a trainee with BBC National Radio in 1994, Clare quickly made a name for herself. Her TV debut came a year later when she covered Royal Ascot. Over the years, she has been at the forefront of major sporting and royal events, from Wimbledon to the Olympics.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Clare reflected on how her work has changed over the years. She said, “I do far less work now than I did in my forties, thirties and twenties. But I hope it’s better quality as I work smarter and I can combine things.”
She added, “I wish I’d learned the art of enjoying the moment sooner, that is something that I am really so much better at now. And taking time and appreciating what’s around me and wanting to be home more, to be honest.”
Clare also emphasized the importance of being present in her personal life. “I mean, I love my work and I love the variety of my work, but I also am very appreciative and better at being present,” she said. “Maybe that’s something that always comes with age, you’d be a pretty unusual teenager if you could do that, I think.”
When she does have some free time, Clare enjoys playing golf with her wife Alice, walking, going to Pilates, and reading plenty of books. “The sun is shining today, I’m going to make sure I’m out,” she insisted. “I’m literally about to go and play nine holes of golf because I can fit that in between other things.”
A Lasting Partnership
Finding quality time in between their busy careers has never been an issue for broadcasting legend Clare and Mellow Magic host Alice, 64. The couple first met back in 1999 when they were both working at the BBC. After their friendship blossomed into something more, they entered a civil partnership in 2006 before officially marrying in 2015.
They have since moved away from the hustle and bustle of London life to the stockbroker belt, according to the Daily Mail. The couple has long spoken about wanting to leave the city behind, and they have now swapped leafy Chiswick near the Thames for even leafier Esher, although it’s only ten miles upstream.
While the move might not quite constitute a rural idyll, as Esher is only 23 minutes from London Waterloo, it may give them a chance to indulge their love of dogs and horses.
Clare is one of the most familiar and well-loved faces on British TV – a reassuring, incisive presence gliding from the Olympics to Crufts, Wimbledon drama to Royal pageantry without breaking stride. But away from the cameras and commentary, friends say the broadcaster’s real pride has long been the life she shares with Arnold – a partnership that has quietly become one of the most enduring and admired marriages in broadcasting.
Clare opened up about their love story to the Daily Mail and said “trust, honesty and laughter” has been the foundation of their happy marriage. “Alice and I just have the most lovely time together, we have so much fun and we enjoy doing the same things to relax,” she said. “But also we have the same work ethic, Alice works for Mellow Magic, she’s a radio person through and through.”
She added, “She totally understands the broadcast environment and she’s very honest with me and will say if she thinks I haven’t done something well or could do it better, so I think there’s that level of trust and honesty.”
“We laugh a lot and we are very aware of the value of our time together. I want to do good work, I want to do quality work, but I really value my time with Alice, so it has to be pretty special to take me away from that.”
Clare also revealed that the key to their happy marriage is “communicating”, especially if she is away travelling for work. “You know, we talk,” she said. “If I am away doing Winter Olympics or something like that, we talk twice or three times a day and I will message all the time.”
Campaign for Digital Landline Switch
Clare has joined forces with BT to launch their new ‘Don’t Put Off The Switch’ campaign ahead of the nationwide digital landline switchover. The TV star is raising awareness around how the UK’s 40-year-old analogue landline network is due to be retired by January 2027, with many households still needing to move to a digital service.
With a particular focus on protecting vulnerable customers, Clare is urging BT users to act when contacted about switching to Digital Voice. “I’m very aware of people being a bit scared of technology and I think updates are always something that some people can be very resistant to,” she said. “But actually the point about digital voice is that it has an inbuilt mechanism where it can stop the spam and scams calls.”
She added, “I’ve had massive conversations with people who have been really close to being properly scammed through quite sophisticated groups that are using the old analogue lines, which is going to retire in January. So with digital voices coming, it’s really just a call to people to make sure that when they’re contacted by the landline provider, they get on and respond.”
“BT will walk you through everything,” she reassured. “It’s really simple and it’s much, much better. That’s the reason I wanted to get involved because I think it makes people more secure and safer.”
