I’m looking for love & I’ve got a type, here’s why I usually call it quits after two dates, says TV’s Laura Hamilton
SHE has been described by fans as the sexiest woman on the planet, so it’s no surprise that presenter Laura Hamilton has plenty of men asking her out.
But after splitting from her husband, the 41-year-old host of Channel 4 property show A Place In The Sun says she will ensure the next man in her life is her Prince Charming.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun on Sunday, she said: “I’ve been on some great dates, to some lovely restaurants, on a picnic, to the theatre.
“But I get the ‘ick’ quite quickly. Once I’ve got the ick, I’m done.
“Usually after two dates I know he isn’t my Prince Charming and then I don’t think it’s fair to waste anyone’s time. If it’s not a ‘F***, yes’, it’s a ‘No’.
“I’m a complete romantic. For me it’s all about chemistry and a genuine connection.
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“It has to be someone who I can be myself with, and is my best friend — and trust is everything for me. It always has been, and I don’t think that is much to ask.
‘It blows my mind’
“When trust is gone in any personal or professional relationship, it’s game over for me.
“You need someone to love you for who you are deep down, for your morals and values — not just because of who they think you are because of your job and a lifestyle.
“I have become picky — I know what I want and I absolutely will not compromise on that.”
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Laura and husband Alex Goward separated in 2021 because they wanted “different things in life”.
For more than a decade she has jetted around the world presenting A Place In The Sun, which is on Channel 4 tomorrow.
In 2011 she also took part in Dancing On Ice, finishing second, then in 2014 she competed in winter sports contest The Jump, leaving on day five after narrowly losing the ski jump-off against Donal MacIntyre.
She is not yet divorced but says the separation was tough and she needed to stay strong for their daughter Tahlia, eight, and son Rocco, nine.
Laura added: “In terms of happiness I’m currently 8.5 out of ten. What’s missing? A partner — but I’m not in any rush for that to happen.
“I’ve got a busy life and, because of what I do and where I am, I’d rather be on my own and happy with my great group of friends than with someone and unhappy.”
She does get a lot of Instagram requests for dates, as well as a few X-rated messages.
Laura said: “Some I just block and ignore. It blows my mind that strangers are happy to send explicit photos to someone they don’t know.”
As for finding a partner, she said she has even tried a dating app for celebrities.
Laura revealed: “I tried Raya after a friend suggested it, but it wasn’t for me. I want to meet someone organically.
“I would never say never to marriage one day. I believe in it, but it isn’t the be all and end all.”
But whoever the lucky man is, 5ft 3in Laura does have some stip-ulations, insisting: “I definitely have a type, and that’s over 6ft with a beard.
“One of my close friends always jokes with me every time we pass a tall guy with a beard and says, ‘Laura, would you date him?’.
“I want someone who will make me laugh and not take themselves too seriously.”
And laughter seems all the more precious since her co-host on A Place In The Sun, 49-year-old Jonnie Irwin, revealed his terminal lung cancer diagnosis last year.
Laura said: “Jonnie is such an inspiring man. I think that’s what we all have to do, no matter what sort of situation we’re in, we choose to live.
“We’ve got one life, and I think you’ve got to live it. Like people say, ‘It’s not a dress rehearsal’.”
‘Spa was a steel tomb’
Now she is in her forties, Laura says she has a more relaxed outlook on life.
She has chopped off her long blonde hair, has signed up to co-present ITV’s This Morning — and has now done her sexiest photoshoot to date, for The Sun on Sunday.
She said: “People say I look like Kylie Minogue now, with my hair, but I’m not sure if I should take that as a compliment or not, considering she’s more than ten years older than me. I’m more free-spirited now, and that comes with age.
“The younger you are, you’re more worried about what people think. I’ve accepted I’m not for everyone.”
But viewers of A Place In The Sun love her, and Laura said: “I always get the people on the show to have a little boogie.
“I swear sometimes they think I’m crazy when they meet me, but people seem to love it, it’s fun.
“I genuinely have a love and passion for property and travel.”
But she added: “While I love pretty much everything about travel, there have been some horror stories.
“I went to a spa in Sri Lanka and was shown into the steam room, which could only be described as a coffin, a stainless steel kind of tomb.
“There were cockroaches in there. I said, ‘If you think I’m getting in that, you’ve got another think coming’.”
Away from the TV cameras, Laura has renovated an impressive 19 properties in the UK and often features her projects on Instagram.
She says one day she might buy her own little place in the sun in Mallorca.
Meanwhile, one of her recent long-distance TV projects really struck a chord. She worked on ITV’s This Morning for a new dating segment, which will air in the coming weeks.
Laura said: “We flew to Barbados, and people were matched on their horoscopes. There was an astrologer with us, I was the host, listening in to see how the dates went.
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“It was amazing fun, and really good to do something very different.
“I love matchmaking. I love to match up my friends, and I’ve had a few successes. I just need to sort out my own love life now, don’t I?”
