'She just didn't like me': Nigella Lawson reveals agonising relationship with her depressed mother 'who hit her brother'
By Anna Edwards
PUBLISHED: 12:34, 4 November 2012 | UPDATED: 17:06, 4 November 2012
Her television shows are imbued with her cheerful, passionate character and her enthusiasm for the good life.
But behind the merry facade Nigella Lawson, one of Britain's most popular food writers, hides a childhood scarred with the memories of a depressive mother and an unorthodox relationship with her father.
The celebrated cook, married to art-collector Charles Saatchi and mother of two, has endured a lifetime of agony.
Nigella, far left, says she had a funny but depressed mother (pictured on phone), seen here with Nigel Lawson and daughter Thomasina
Her mother, Vanessa Salmon, died of liver cancer at the age of 48 when Nigella was only 25, her younger sister Thomasina died from breast cancer aged 32 when the cook was 32, and her first husband John Diamond, a journalist, died in 2001 aged 41 of throat cancer.
The 52-year-old explains how her childhood was spent flitting between different schools and clashing with her mother who, she says quite simply: 'Just didn't like me.'
Speaking to the Financial Times, she describes her mother, who married former Chancellor Nigel Lawson, as funny but deeply depressed, and would often lash out at her children if they made too much noise.
Nigella claims she had a unique relationship with her father Lord Nigel Lawson
Nigella, who was one of four, describes how her older brother Dominic was beaten by her mother so much that she had to eventually stop because it was hurting her hand too much.
She told the Financial Times magazine: 'She’d shout at all of us and say, "I’m going to hit you till you cry," and so I never would cry.'
Lawson, who is estimated to be worth £15million, says that as she grew older she started to have a happier relationship with her mother, despite her parents divorcing in 1980.
But although the Oxford University student came to be on better terms with her mother, Vanessa would still say distressing things to her daughter.
As her mother lay dying, she told Nigella that at least she could commit suicide now her daughter was an adult, as it would have been far worse to take her own life when Lawson was just a child, the magazine reported.
In a stark contrast to her mother's fierce outbursts, she claims her father, former Chancellor Nigel Lawson, was a relaxed, carefree parent.
He would congratulate her on being a terror at school but well-behaved at home, and encourage the young Nigella to have a drink of whiskey with him as she studied for her A-Levels as he did not like drinking alone.
Nigella insists that her television shows, known for her flirtatious manner, are nonsense, and branded suggestive by men.
Seen here with her first husband John Diamond, Nigella has endured both him, her mother and sister dying of cancer
The presenter says that women find her approachable and do not perceive her informal cooking style as flirty.
But after years of heartache, life is looking swell for the charismatic cook.
Her latest television show, Nigellissima, has aired on BBC 2 and been a huge success with her Italian-themed recipes.
She and her husband Charles Saatchi are inseparable, and the chef has a refreshingly relaxed attitude to the fats in her food, championing the importance of fat in cooking for flavour.
Art collector Charles Saatchi and Nigella Lawson are inseparable from each other, after moving in with each other in 2003
And, despite her calorie-laden dishes, the mother has reached her goal of shaving off a little weight with a strict diet - details of which she Tweeted to her followers.
Nigella Lawson says that she has a happy family life after finding love again with Charles Saatchi
Appearing at this year's Cheltenham Literature Festival to talk about her new Italian style cookery book Nigellissima, she said that eating 'real food' rather than relying on ready meals was important for health and good skin.
She sad: 'On the whole your skin and your body and your mind are happier if you have food which is real and not processed bits of cardboard and whatever else it is.
'There is always room for a bit of junk food from time to time but you really need proper food to feel properly alive.'
Read more: 'She just didn't like me': Nigella Lawson reveals agonising relationship with her depressed mother 'who hit her brother' | Mail Online
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