Tess Daly says husband Vernon Kay is the strict parent to the couple’s two daughters Phoebe, 19, and Amber, 14.
The Strictly Come Dancing presenter has given some rare insight into her home life in Buckinghamshire with Radio 2 star Vernon and their teenagers.
Tess, 54, revealed her approach to parenting teen girls, explaining how she thinks being present is key.
‘As a mum, I just want to be as present as I can be. I pride myself on that,’ she told OK! ‘Teenagers don’t always want to talk to you, but even if you’re just physically there in the room with them… I’ll plonk myself there quietly in the corner.’
‘You’ve got two little people who have become young adults. It’s amazing and constantly rewarding. I love being a mum – it’s my most important job.’
Tess Daly says husband Vernon Kay is the strict parent to the couple’s two daughters Phoebe, 19, and Amber, 14
Tess went on to explain how she and Vernon, 49, make a great team, but her husband is more strict.
‘Vernon is a great dad – he loves them to bits. I don’t know if there’s a good cop, bad cop, but maybe he’s a little stricter sometimes. But it’s for the greater good and we’re a good team.’
‘I’m proud of how down to earth they are. That’s what you want – kids who are kind and who have a good work ethic and respect people. You just try to mould good humans.’
Tess and Vernon’s eldest daughter is currently studying at drama school.
Last year, Tess admitted she tracks Phoebe on an app because she worries about her safety while she’s driving alone.
She revealed on the Spinning Plates podcast that her eldest is now a driver which is the reason for her concerns.
She said: ‘When your child starts to drive, that’s a whole new minefield. I’ve got that app LIFE360 and I track Phoebe on it obsessively until she gets to her destination.
‘It’s because she’s a new driver. And the relief when I see she’s reached it . . . you never stop worrying.
Tess went on to explain how she and Vernon, 49, make a great team, but her husband is more strict (Vernon is pictured with eldest daughter Phoebe in 2023)
The Strictly host joked: ‘She’s only gone for 20 minutes and I’m a nervous wreck. It’s ridiculous. Loosen the leash!’
Despite her concerns she admitted that she is letting her girls forge their own life paths, and gushed that she and Vernon have a ‘great relationship’ with them.
She said: ‘You just have to advise them and gently guide the way. It has to feel like they’re reaching their own decisions in life.
‘But they’re needing more as they get older. They need more life advice, there seems to be more mental hand-holding. You never stop parenting. I don’t know when that all-seeing eye ends.’
Last year, Vernon said he doesn’t want his children to live off his and wife Tess’ fame, insisting they form ‘their own careers.’
He told MailOnline that he and Tess believe it’s important for their offspring ‘to find themselves’ and not be given their ‘life on a plate’, crediting the pair’s Northern backgrounds for shaping their parenting beliefs.
Tess, 54, revealed her approach to parenting teen girls, explaining how she thinks being present is key
Vernon said: ‘We let them be independent when it comes to them and their futures because it’s important that you allow them to find themselves, which is character building and personality development.
‘Sometimes I think that the old silver spoon and life on a plate in front of them… I think that’s quite contradictory to how you want them to be.
‘Tess and I grew up in hearty, wholesome Northern families and that’s a huge trait that helped us in our personal development and I think that’s really important.’
He added: ‘I don’t disagree with anyone that does that by helping their kids, which is great, but I just think sometimes for us, personally, it’s whatever they’re into, they can go and discover themselves.’
