The broadcaster and host of spin-off shows for The Voice, The X Factor and I’m A Celebrity said in adulthood her background became “more and more important to me.”
“I think I rejected it to an extent when I was young, because it was different, and you want to fit in and look like other kids.”
The 31-year-old continued: “I didn’t want to tell anyone that we ate Nigerian food at home, because I was embarrassed that other people didn’t. And now I realise it’s really cool.”
Hope spoke about taking a while to feel like she belonged, adding: “I remember thinking that no-one really looked like me.
“I quite quickly found my tribe, my people, and I made the best friends who are still my closest in the world. They’re amazing people, full of passion and with such incredible minds and vivid interests, from whom I’ve learned and grown.”
Hope, who is bilingual and studied languages at Cambridge, said University helped with her confidence.
“I became confident as well with putting my hand up to make a point in front of a lot of peo-ple, which, I guess, is useful in my job now.
“And my professors were the best in the world at their discipline, so I was talking to people who are really great at what they do. That’s also something that is transferable to interviewing.”
The full interview appears in the April/May issue of HELLO! Fashion on sale today
