Claudia Winkleman 'slept on floor' after going behind family's back with huge decision

• Showbiz
• Claudia Winkleman

The Strictly and Traitors presenter Claudia Winkleman made a big decision but had to go the extra mile to get her husband and three children on board

(Image: Ian West/PA Wire)

Claudia Winkleman's husband Kris Thykier and their kids were left "horrified" when she brought a new addition to the family without letting them know. The Traitors star says anything in her home with Kris and their children Jake, 21, Matilda, 18, and Arthur, 13, requires a "PowerPoint presentation" before the family agrees to it.

But with one child at university, another preparing to go, and a teenager who increasingly relies on mum less, Claudia, 52, knew she needed to change something. It led Claudia to decide she wanted to get a dog in the hope it would encourage her to become more active and "get off her phone".

Her family however were worried that Claudia wouldn't look after the pooch, and that their home wouldn't be suitable for the animal.

Speaking to The Times, she said: "If you want to get something done in our house you have to do a PowerPoint presentation, so I put one together to Kris and the three kids. They all said, 'Absolutely not, Mum, we're just not a dog family. We don't have a garden, so it's not fair on the dog.'

"They said I wouldn't walk it and they'd be in charge. And we'd already got a bunny. So I said, 'Fine.' And then about six months later I just got one without telling them."

Claudia, with the help of former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell, eventually came home with Skip, now a year old.

Claudia said she had to put on a PowerPoint presentation for her family to get a dog(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)

The star now declares Skip the "love of her life" and says she "licked his entire tongue once".

She admits her family had a look of "horror" when she first brought the pooch home, with Claudia confessing to being the "laziest person in the world".

But she knew it was time to step up, saying: "The kids had to learn how to unload the dishwasher from a really young age. But I said, 'Don't worry, this is on me.' I knew he was my responsibility.

Claudia Winkleman with husband Kris Thykier(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)

"Nobody else had to pick up the poo or do the walking. I slept on the floor next to him until he got used to the new house."

Fast forward a year and Claudia, the much-loved co-host of Strictly Come Dancing with Tess Daly, reveals she's out for strolls with Skip four times a day. Despite the initial shock, Claudia says the family has totally fallen for Skip.

Fans can catch more of Claudia when she hosts the gripping BBC One and BBC iPlayer show The Traitors, hitting screens again January 1 and airing on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.