Rachel Riley reveals how hosting Ukrainian refugees has impacted her children
COUNTDOWN presenter Rachel Riley says hosting Ukrainian refugees is “so rewarding”, adding that her two young daughters “absolutely love” living with a little boy they treat as a brother.
The TV presenter, 37, has spoken about opening her home to four refugees, just over a year after Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
She told BBC Breakfast: “It is so rewarding and it’s working for us.
“Our girls absolutely love having this little boy. It’s like they’ve got an extra brother and he’s got sisters to look after.
“He’s just turned eight years old. He’s really a young man who has had to grow up before his years.
“We’re getting on like one big family. It’s just a brilliant thing to be able to do.”
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Riley joked that she and her Russian husband, former Strictly dancer Pasha Kovalev, “can’t leave a carrot or beetroot unattended without coming back to find a pot of borscht [traditional Ukrainian soup] being made.”
The couple met on the 11th series of Strictly Come Dancing and married in 2019, following Riley’s divorce from Jamie Gilbert in 2013.
They have two children, Maven, three, and Noa, 16 months.
Riley said she wanted to thank the Ukrainians as part of the UK’s third annual Thank You Day on July 2 — a dedicated day for people to express their gratitude to refugees.
