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Sophie Dahl talks to Red about life with Jamie Cullum and the kids

Sophie Dahl tells Red why Jamie Cullum is a great husband and father and how she's overcome her mother's issues in order to have a happy home life.

When Sophie Dahl started dating jazz musician Jamie Cullum, we were a little shocked. Not only did they seem to come from completely different worlds, but at 5ft11 she towers over 5ft4 Cullum – and every tall girl knows what it can be like dating a guy who is shorter than you. However, almost seven years on the couple are now happily married and have a brilliant life together with their two children Lyra and Margot.

Speaking to Red magazine in their March issue, Dahl says: “I’m married to a really, really good guy. He’s intensely curious and engaged with life, and we bring out the best in each other. When you meet someone who really sees you, it gives you the emotional freedom to pursue your dreams.”

She adds: “He has been incredibly supportive of my career. I didn’t finish my A-levels so there was always a part of me that wanted to be taken seriously. Having children was very liberating because I gave much less of a s**t about all of those things. They were suddenly the reason, much more important than any petty, navel-gazing feelings I’d indulged before.”

She believes the reason that she and her siblings have always craved settled home lives is because of their unconventional childhoods, due to her mother’s mental health and substance abuse issues.

“My relationship with my mum is loving but complicated because of her issues. It’s not something I talk about much, but anyone who has grown up with a parent who is an addict will know how difficult it is,” she tells Red. “My siblings and I had a loving but very chaotic and muddled childhood, and as a result we have sought out lives that are consistent and stable, domestic and happy. That is the thing I am most proud of, creating that, because if you grow up with an addict, it can so easily go the other way.”

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Posted by Marianne Kaskela.

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