Beauty Queen

DJ Louise McSharry talks to Andrea Smith about the challenges of her past and fighting fatphobia.

2fm DJ Louise McSharry is looking radiant on our cover, but then again, she’s quite the old hand at gracing the front of Woman’s Way. She last featured on the cover in 1984 when she was chosen as our baby of the year, after her proud mother Dee entered her adorable little one in the competition.

“I won and obviously that was the only story about me that ever mattered in my family,” Louise laughs, adding that she chose the picture for the cover of her 2016 autobiography, Fat Chance: My Life in Ups, Downs and Crisp Sandwiches.

The title reflects Louise’s commitment to speaking out against the inherent difficulties plus-sized people deal with, including fatphobia and discrimination.

Her arguments are always measured, dignified and irrefutably logical, and her glamour, strength and intelligence make her a wonderful role model for all, especially young women.

While being called upon to comment on issues around weight can be wearing at times, Louise speaks out because she grew up at a time when there was a hugely negative connotation attached to being fat.

“I'm grateful to have the opportunity to do it,” she says. “I lived for years in silence, just hoping that no one would ever notice that I was fat and feeling so much shame about it. It would have been absolutely game-changing for me to see someone speaking out about it.”

One incident that stands out for Louise is when she made her documentary, F*** Cancer, for RTÉ, after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2013.

“Someone said to me, ’Oh you looked great at the start of the documentary – you were so thin,’” she says, shaking her head in disbelief. “I was thin because I literally had stage three cancer, and was on the path to death. People can't help it though, because we’re socialised into thinking that being thin is the be-all and end-all, and losing weight is always a good thing, no matter what the context.”

The other incident that stayed with her was when Dr Eva Orsmond expressed the controversial view that women “allowing” themselves to be overweight or obese when pregnant is “criminal.” “I was pregnant at the time, and she was saying that fat people shouldn't have kids and that you’re a danger to your children if you're fat and you get pregnant,” Louise says, incredulously. “That occurred only a few years ago on Irish TV.”

The 38-year-old strongly believes that other people's bodies should not be a topic of conversation, and you can tell someone they look great without referring to their weight, height or other physical attributes.

Louise on the Woman’s Way cover, 1984.

She acknowledges that change is beginning to happen, as inclusivity is being fostered and discrimination rooted out from where it previously festered.

Plus-size influencers are increasingly celebrated these days, different types of bodies are appearing on screen and magazine covers, and some fashion labels are catering for larger sizes.

“There’s still loads of room for improvement, but if I was teenage me now, I think I’d have a much better time,”

Louise muses. “There’s access to the kind of clothes you’d want to wear, and so many people you can find on the internet who have similar builds to you and look incredible or are really confident. I spent so many years thinking that constantly trying to be a thin person was the only way you could be as a bigger person, so to see people accepting themselves and being happy in themselves would have been amazing for me.”

Despite the American twang to her accent, Louise was born in Dublin. Her father Winston died from cancer aged 28 when she was three years old and her brother Andrew was just one. “It must have been terribly sad for him and I can't even comprehend what that pain must have been like,” she says.

Her mother Dee was already drinking too much and her alcoholism became a much bigger problem after Winston died, forcing Louise to take on a parental role to both her brother and mum at a very young age.

Dee moved the family to Chicago when Louise was seven, and the situation seriously deteriorated. The children ultimately went to live with Dee’s brother Ruaidhri and his wife Ger, who also lived in Chicago and with whom she has a great relationship.

Louise is married to Gordon Spierin who also works in RTÉ, and they have two adorable children, Sam (5) and Ted (2). She describes herself as a relaxed parent and it is really important to her that her children feel safe and happy. “I feel it's going to be a hard couple of years for me because I very much remember what I was doing when I was Sam’s age,” she says. “I was pouring booze down the sink before I was seven, and I think I'm going to experience a real feeling of loss in terms of the childhood I didn't have.”

Despite the difficulties she experienced, Louise speaks of her late mum with love and compassion. Dee loved her children, but the alcoholism rendered her incapable of taking proper care of them.

“She was sick,” Louise shrugs. “You’d have to be incapable of making a better decision or feel like you absolutely have no choice but to drink, and I think that’s the situation she was in. I think she did the best she could, but unfortunately, it was really not enough.”

Louise and her adoptive family moved back to Ireland when she was 16 and she did her Leaving Cert here. She dropped out of her arts degree at UCD and began working as a researcher in Newstalk at 20.

She moved to iRadio after four years and became presenter of its breakfast show, but was made redundant in 2009 when the economy crashed. She got some work filling on 2fm and thus began her career with the station.

Louise now presents her two-hour radio show every Saturday and Sunday morning, which she adores. While it’s fun and entertaining, there’s a real intelligence and thoughtfulness behind the items featured and it has been very well-received to date.

She is hugely passionate about makeup and writes the beauty column in the Irish Independent’s Weekend magazine, which brings her a lot of pleasure. She is known for creating bold, adventurous looks for followers on Instagram.

Louise has observed that men in her industry are generally much more confident when it comes to asking for opportunities and knocking on doors. Her advice for women who may be hesitant about embarking on a new career or asking for promotion is that sometimes you have to assume an air of confidence until you get to the point where you actually believe in your abilities.

The presenter was 31 when she was diagnosed with cancer and says that while she is conscious that it can happen to anyone at any time, she doesn't worry unduly about it coming back.

“It's not that I'm casual about it or that I assume if I got another cancer diagnosis I would definitely be okay at the end of it, but I suppose in a way it's less scary because I've had it,” she says. “If anything, I think it has made me feel more confident in terms of my health and what my body is capable of getting through.”

Louise McSharry, 2fm, Saturday and Sunday 9am-11am

Louise ’s age-defying tips

1>> Firstly, don’t be afraid to have fun with makeup, so wear neon yellow eyeliner if it feels good.

2>> Hydrating foundations and products are best because your skin gets drier as you get older. I think IT Cosmetics CC cream is brilliant because it's hydrating and does an incredible job of evening the skin tone. And retinol is a key ingredient for ageing skin.

3>> As you get older, your brows tend to lighten and can kind of disappear a bit, but if you have a soft brow going on, it helps give your face a bit of structure. There are amazing options now for people who don't feel that confident with using makeup, such as microblading.

4>> A good mascara can be a gamechanger. Sometimes brown mascara can be really nice and less harsh than black.

5>> When it comes to keeping lipstick in place, my granny was a fan of Lipcote and I think it still works really well. There are lots of long-lasting lipsticks available but lipgloss can be really flattering on women of any age.

6>> Don't be afraid of blusher as adding a bit of colour to your cheeks will always make you look fresher and more alive.

7>> If you're considering Botox, I have it and I recommend it, but I think you should always go to a doctor when it comes to putting needles and product into your face.

8>> Hair thinning can be a problem as we age but Nioxin is a great product for that. There are also great experts that you can talk to about hair loss.

9>> A great hairdresser is essential. I lost all my hair when I had chemo and I honestly think I looked well at every stage from having no hair to growing it out. That’s because I went to Christian Shannon in Brown Sugar who gave me regular haircuts.

10>> Don’t feel you should cut your hair off at a certain age (I don’t believe in things not being age appropriate). Discuss it with your hairdresser, I’m sure they’ll make you feel confident and comfortable but still like yourself.

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