She burst onto the scene in 2011 as the blonde party-goer in Made In Chelsea, forming part of the original cast along with the likes of Ollie Locke and Binky Felstead. But Francesca “Cheska” Hull left it all behind in 2014 when she sensationally quit the show, later uprooting her glamorous life in West London for a quieter one in the Devon countryside.
Cheska returned to MIC briefly in 2017 to share the happy news that she was expecting her first child, going on to welcome her son Charlie in November that year with ex-boyfriend Tom Huggett, from whom she split during her pregnancy.
But the reality star-turned-PR, 36, found love again with new partner Damian Cook after falling head-over-heels on the school run, and she has fully embraced blended family life with his two teenage daughters and a son.
She tells Closer, “Leaving London was something I knew I had to do, deep down inside. I was very depressed and struggling. Everything became difficult – getting out of bed in the morning, saying yes to social engagements, being with friends. I knew in order to get my mental health back on track–and to be me again – I had to leave.”
She adds, “Starting again was a really tough thing to do. I felt it meant that I’d failed. Now, I don’t see that at all. I’m very proud that I did it.”
Cheska and Damian’s love story started with “outrageous flirting every Wednesday” when dropping their sons off at school. Nine months and several Facebook messages later, they are still going from strength to strength, to the extent they are taking the next step in their relationship by moving in together.
She recalls, “I was single for a while, focusing on motherhood and my family business. Then, last year, I remember I was waiting to pick up my son in the playground. I looked over and was like, ‘That’s the kind of guy I should be with.’ I didn’t know if he was married or what the situation was, I just thought, ‘Oh, he looks lovely. I wish I was with someone like that.’ The rest is history.”
Cheska’s time on MIC was largely centred on her friendship with Binky and Ollie, and the three of them remain close today. Ollie – who Cheska has been friends with since her teens – is about to become a dad to twins with husband Gareth, something everyone is “over the moon” about, particularly following the couple’s widely-documented struggles with IVF.
“I always said to Ollie, ‘You will be the best dad.’ Even back in the day, when he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be with a girl or boy, he always wanted to be a daddy. And now he’s having two [babies]!” she says.
While the cameras on Made In Chelsea depicted Cheska living and loving life, reality, she explains, was a different story. She recalls being thrown into this “crazy world” that “no one” understood, which took its toll over time and led her to finding life “really depressing”.
“I’d lost my life. I couldn’t go anywhere without people saying horrible things,” Cheska says. “It was all-encompassing, but there was no one to talk to about it. I just felt very alone. I had a long-term boyfriend while I was on Made In Chelsea, but they always made out I was single. You’re playing a role, as much as it’s not scripted. They will typecast you: Binky is very much the girl next door. Ollie is the gay best friend. I was kind of the single Bridget Jones, even though I wasn’t single. It’s meant to be real, but then you can’t show your real sides.”
The show first aired on E4 in 2011, a time when social media was just starting to gain popularity.
“I remember Binky wasn’t even on social media, and just before the first episode came out, I got her phone and set her up. It was all so new. We had no idea what we were doing,” the mum-of-one confesses.
Despite falling upon hard times where her mental health was concerned, Cheska’s low-key lifestyle on the coast has clearly done her wonders.
“My life is so different, but amazing. I probably wouldn’t have my son today if I hadn’t moved. I went from being a single mum with one boy to having this huge, blended family. We all get on well and do lots of fun things. I guess we’re a bit like the Von Trapp family! I’ve never been happier.”
Cheska works at Devon-based PR agency, Raw Food and Drink. For more information, visit Rawfoodanddrinkpr.co.uk