Exclusive - Peta Todd

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CITY DRINKING had a drink with British Model, DJ, fundraiser & mum Peta Todd at West London’ Diva Beach nightclub to find out where she likes to go out, what she likes to drink, her ideal & nightmare date, her work for Help For Heores and what you should never do if you see her out…

Note: Click here to check out Peta’s New Column with Page 3.com

How did you get into modelling?

I got started n the modelling industry a bit by accident to be honest. I was doing my A levels and was working in a mens hairdressers as a Saturday job at the weekend and one of the guys hair I used to wash worked for Sun Online and he was like “look in your summer holidays do you want to come and do some promotional work for us?” and I was like yeah it pays a lot better then washing hair and I don’t have to touch peoples dirty heads. So I did that and I met a lot of the girls and things like that and they were like “Oh I bet you end up doing page 3” and I was like “I’m going to be a family lawyer actually, is what I’m going” to do and then I was at sixth form, I did my A levels and I realised I didn’t want to go to university anymore and I thought, well nothing ventured nothing gained and that was that. I went and shot and I’m still getting naked – its happy days.

What are the best and worst things about modelling?

I don’t have to work 5 days a week which is quite a nice thing, I suppose and its quite a social environment; you get to meet lots of different people and everyday isn’t the same. So you don’t get bored too easily and its kind of a miniature family with The Sun Page 3 Girls you all sort of know each other so that’s a nice aspect, but the bad things are…everyone thinks you’re stupid, all the time. But you can use that to your advantage, so it’s swings and roundabouts.

What reaction did you get the first time you were on Page 3?

My family were all pretty cool really, I was living with my grandparents at the time, my gran actually dropped me to my first Page 3 test shoot in her green Micra - legend. They were ok, my gran was like you know “I don’t ever want to see it, but if that’s what you want to do”. My dad wasn’t best pleased when I first told him, I rang him up just to be courteous and he was not best pleased, but now if you ask him he tells the story totally differently and tells you that “I always said that t was nothing more than you would see on the beach”. That was not how it happened, but everyone was pretty cool really.

Tell us more about The Sun 2010 Calendar?

I’ve got no idea what month I am in next years calendar yet because I haven’t seen it all put together. It was shot n the mountainous area of Majorca actually, it was pretty impressive. We had a massive really really old farm house and it’s a bit hippyish themed, I would go with, or peasant chic I would say perhaps. I was quite unwell actually when I was away shooting the calendar and I had a sore eye and in the video you can hear that I’ve got a really sore throat. So winner all round.

What advice would you give aspiring models?

First of all don’t give up any other job that you have because you’re not going to start making loads of money straight away and then you will get yourself in to a real pickle that would be the first. Don’t give money to anybody, is a massive one, its been in the news a lot recently about agencies charging money to be taken on. Don’t part with any cash for portfolios or anything like that, you don’t need to. Just be yourself, don’t try and look like anybody else, because there’s no point in that, the way you’ll succeed is by being individual, you don’t need to conform to any type of stereotype.

What would be your ideal night out?

My ideal night out would have to start with food that’s very important to me, so a meal somewhere and then, I quite enjoy a few drinks in one place, maybe go and see a band, or music, performance and then continue with some more drinking ended by some more food.

What is the worst way to approach you, if someone sees you on a night out?

I wouldn’t touch me, in anyway, I don’t respond well to being touched by people I don’t know. You know people that are too familiar and come over with lots of arms around or face touching, don’t do that its not big or clever. Just be a normal human being, just come and say hello. Its worse when people look from a far and then pretend their not looking, its kind of an awkward eye catching moment.

Do you think Britain has a problem with Binge Drinking?

I think that our drink culture is different to a lot of places around the world. If you have a look at the drinking that goes on in places around the world such as France, there is a lot of drinking in that culture but its surrounded a lot more around sort of meals and families. I think we have always had a drink culture but I think it used to be more in the home as well where people would go and buy beer and take them home and watch the football or whatever and it was in that way, where I think it’s a lot more on the outside now, it’s a lot more visible to people. As well its hard economic times, I think people want to go and let their hair down and forget about the stresses and strains that are going on a little bit so I think its kind of inevitable to a degree. I think everything in moderation, but I think that would explain it.

Do you prefer live music or club on a night out?

I like a bit of a mix up, sometimes i like to just go out, if I like to go out with my friends and have a bit of a dance and I mean a proper dance none of this standing on the edge kind of dancing, I mean hair up proper dancing. I love live music, so a bit of a mixture I’ve not really got a favourite it depends who I am out with, what mood I’m in. Midweek you’ve got to go live music, weekend dancing, that’s how I like to…that’s how I plan it.

What annoys you about bars/clubs restaurants?

If someone bumps into you or spills a drink, just say sorry, its fine. If someone bumps into me and then pretends that they haven’t, or if I bump into someone and say sorry and then they look at me as though I’ve not said sorry – I’ve said sorry what more do you want me to do? There’s my rant about going out.

Do you think the smoking ban has made going out better?

I love it, because I’m not a smoker, so it means that I don’t have to have that horrible moment when you get in the shower the next day and the smell of smoke comes out when you’re washing your hair and makes me want to vomit. So yes I enjoy it and I think its funny when you see the people that have to stand in the rain and the cold just to have a cigarette and I think c’mon, c’mon now. The comedy value is high.

What has been the highlight of your career?

The highlight of my career has probably been getting involved with Help For Heroes through page 3 really and getting the opportunity to go out to Afghanistan last year was phenomenal and wasn’t something I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do if it wasn’t for Page 3 so that definitely I would say.

How did you get involved with Help For Heroes?

I got involved with Help For Heroes a bit by accident as well really. I went down on a job, there were 4 of us I think went down to Headley Court which is the rehabilitation centre in Epsom to sign Calendars 2 Christmas’ ago and to be honest I was like “it’s quite a long drive” (laughs) and I got there and from the minute I set foot inside I was aware that I wasn’t aware of it and if I wasn’t aware of it then other people weren’t aware of it and it knocked me for six and I said “if there is anything I can do, I want to do, I don’t know what can do but I want to learn more about it”. So I went down to Headley and sat on the fundraising committee and had a look round the facilities, saw what they did and didn’t have and just said “look if anything comes up, any way I can help give me a shout”. A few weeks later they ran me and were like “we’ve got this bike ride, just a little one in Northern France gong to be great” and I was like “yeah that’s fine”. It wasn’t, it was 400 miles in 5 days and I had not been on a bike since I was about 10. But that was it and when I came back from that they asked me If I would be an official patron for them and I have been working with them ever since.

You have just climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, How was it?

I did, I got back from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro about 2 weeks ago with Help For Heroes, it was emotional. I couldn’t have comprehended how hard it was going to be and ‘m glad I didn’t know how hard t was going to be before I did it, because it was horrendous. It was just like the altitude, the actual experience was phenomenal, the team I went with were phenomenal and it was amazing but the altitude sickness, I was not fond of this, I was sick a lot.

How long were you out there?

It was a 10 day trip it took us 5 days up 2 days down. Coming down was the worst because when you’re going up it’s like you have got something to aim for and you can think right I’ve got to get there, I’ve got to get there. On the way down its like I’ve done that and coming down hurts your knees, you’ve been using the same lot of muscles every day and then you’re using totally different ones to come down. I seem to do better acclimatising to altitude going up then I did coming down, my body didn’t like coming down. I was an angry lady for 2 days. I was furious.

What are your Xmas plans?

I’m not very good with organisation so I’ve kind of not planned it too much so far. I imagine I will be with my little boy and my mum, my brother and just chillin’ doing the eating thing that’s generally how I like to roll just eating a lot. But I prefer Xmas Eve to Xmas day its one of my favourite days.

What about New Years Eve plans?

I don’t like new years, I really don’t like new years. Everyone behaves like an idiot on New Years because they feel the pressure to go out and have an amazing night, so its always a bit of a weird atmosphere, everyone wants to be really really drunk by midnight and yeah I find it a weird one, New Years day I like because you can just sleep and eat.

What about New Year Resolutions?

I always just feel like a liar when I make new years resolutions, because I struggle to stick to them, although every year I do try and make the news resolution to try and be on time because I am late for everything even I set my clocks slightly fast but all I do is know that they’re fast, so I think yeah that’s not the time, I’ve got 10 more minutes/

What would be your dream day off?

My dream day of would be…I would have to of persuaded my 2 best friends to also get the day off, I don’t like to do things on my own, so do that. Go for some kind of brunch not too early you don’t want breakfast on a day off you want brunch, go for brunch, probably…is it winter or is it summer for my day off? If it was summer – go and sit down by St Katherines dock, sit outside have a drink some more food and people watch. If its winter that’s a totally different day off there, just get everybody round at mine and just chill out and talk nonsense a lot, shopping maybe, or tennis, I enjoy playing tennis in the winter indoors. There you go I don’t like playing tennis in the summer outside, I only like it indoors.

Who, what & where would be your ideal date?

My ideal date would be maybe go to some sort of sporting event, preferably not the cricket and then go out for something to eat (laughs) that’s all I ever say food is very important to me and then go out for some drinks. Don’t go to the cinema because that’s the worst ever date to go on, I just think what’s the point you’re never going to get to know someone. You go and say lets go and sit next to each other for 2 hours and not speak, so not the cinema. With whom…Dennis Pennis you know the guy that plays Dennis Pennis, is his name Paul Kaye? him.

What about your worst possible date?

My worst date would probably be the cinema, especially if they touched my face (laughs). The cinema would be bad, you know if a guy is going out on a date with a girl to the cinema “I know what she’ll like, im going to make a sacrifice, go and see some kind of rom-com” (sighs) What have you done there, rom-coms are a terrible type of film, terrible genre, I do not enjoy those. So any type of rom-com cinema action would be dreadful and if I had to go with Jesse Metcalfe I would probably injure myself. He was in Desperate Housewives and went out with Nadine from Girls Aloud, I do not enjoy him.

How did you get involved with Absolute Radio?

I got involved with radio, I went onto Talk Sport which is where I worked before I went on to Absolute and I went on as a guest as a favour to a guy I knew that was doing his show, I went on and got on well and they were like “yeah come back again” so I went back again a few times as guest and they were like “yeah this works out well, would you like to come and do every Saturday?” so I did every Saturday & Sunday and I was there about 8 months I suppose and then I did the same I went on to Tim Shaws show at Absolute as a guest to promote my Calendar and we got on really well and he was like “ if you want to do it, then I will teach you like the desk and stuff, but don’t be rubbish, like don’t let me down” and that was that really. So that was about a year ago now, yeah I love it radio is awesome, it is a lot more personal than television and it’s a lot more creative, you’re not doing any type of auto cue, it can come straight from your head and it’s disposable once its there you can move onto the next thing. I think it’s a very important and slightly underrated medium.

How do you manage your time with being a model, a mum, media & charity work?

I’ve got this clock and its stops time. Im very lucky to have a good balance of stuff I’ve got a lot of people around me that are very supportive – family and friends and stuff that help me out a lot I couldn’t do it without them. Its just a bit of juggling, I’ve got my radio in the evening and then my little boy goes to nursery and I’ve got modelling during the day and yeah, just sort of squeeze it all in. It was that or create an eighth day, thought I’d go for the squeezing option.

Any future plans?

The future, its very exciting times. I‘ve got a lot of bits and pieces coming up, some top secret stuff. I reckon I’ll probably do another year modelling, or doing Page 3 anyway. I mean it will be 5 years in February, I’m some kind of relic of Page 3 now in Page 3 terms, im getting on in the glamour world, I will be 23 in December. Im only joking, I will be 23 that’s not a lie, and im hopefully going to start doing some writing for The Sun. There’s a project called Instigate Debate which is basically, I was working on with John McClure and Carl Barat, John McClure from Reverend and the Peacemakers, Carl from The Libertines which we’ve been doing a lot a the festivals we’ve done Reading and Leeds, Latitude, trying to involve the younger generation in current affairs, things like that, that was awesome probably going to try and do more things with them. More radio stuff and I hope to do the Marathon De sable this year for Help For Heroes which is like 6 marathons 5 days in the desert – Yes!

My Favourites

Bar – Soho Hotel Bar

Drink – Bottle of Peroni or Rum & Coke

Restaurant – Any type of Japanese

Hotel – Soho Hotel

Recording Artist – The King Blues

Film – Man On Fire

TV Programme – Family Guy

Holiday Destination – Sardinia

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