Stacey Solomon has addressed the possibility of relocating to America for her career, after being snapped up by Hollywood star Reese Witherspoon.
Stacey Solomon has revealed she has some reservations about quitting the UK, and leaving her idyllic Essex home behind, to crack America. The star, who shares three young children with husband Joe Swash, and two older sons from previous relationships, insisted her family come as a package deal.
It comes after the Loose Women star’s new Channel 4 TV show, Renovation Rescue, was signed up by Legally Blonde actress Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine production company - giving Stacey the unique opportunity to gain a US fanbase.
Stacey discussed a potential move Stateside with Caroline Hirons on her podcast, Glad We Had This Chat, when the host quizzed: “So, are you going to go to the USA?”
The mum-of-five excitedly exclaimed in response: “Oh my God, that would be so cool, wouldn’t it?” However, she admitted having her doubts due to her family, quickly adding: “What would I do with the kids though? We’d have to all go there!”
The former X Factor contestant also expressed concerns that Americans wouldn’t be able to understand her Essex accent, admitting: “No, I don’t know if they’d understand me! Whenever I’m in America, people say, ‘oh are you from Australia?’ It’s the common twang, I think!”
Stacey went on to suggest that Reese should come to the UK instead to do a cameo in the show.
The presenter quipped: “Can Reese come and cameo? Does she want to come and see it? I’m hoping she’ll come down, now the series is on, and have a viewing with me at mine!”
Discussing the concept behind Renovation Rescue, Stacey shared: “So, Hello Sunshine had only commissioned in the US - and they wanted to do their first UK commission - and when they asked me if I would do it, I was like, absolutely!
“Another industry that’s really messed up is the building industry - there’s no regulations around it. Anyone can say they’re a builder - you don’t have to have certificates - you can just go in, quote a job, take a deposit, and never see that person again.
“So we went around the country finding people who had started projects, or just found themselves in a position where they were told it was going to cost one amount, and it actually cost so much more.
“Some of the stories were heartbreaking - some of these people were trying to start new lives because they’d had massive traumas, and these people had left them in rubble, basically.
“So, what we do is - we hired a female builder, Aggie, she’s incredible, and we go in and meet these families - see what work is left to be done, what remedial work needs to be done, what we need to pay tradesmen for, because we physically couldn’t do it ourselves, and then we pick apart the things that anyone could do.”
A source previously told The Mirror of Stacey’s bid to crack the US: “Renovation shows are a mega business in America. There are entire channels dedicated to them.
“And they love Brits. Bake Off is popular in the States because Americans love Paul and Prue’s Britishness. Grand Designs is also very popular in America because of Kevin McCloud.
“They think viewers will fall for Stacey’s English charm, and the Reese connection is a big enabler. They launched a UK arm of Hello Sunshine to create formats that could sell in Britain first and then around the world. Hello Sunshine has all the contacts in the US, so it’s all set up.”
