Dawn French’s yoyo weight loss journey as she brands herself a barrel after 7st gain

Dawn French ’s weight loss journey has been the subject of many headlines throughout the years.

The Vicar Of Dibley star, 62, has been incredibly open and honest about her fluctuating weight since making the decision to change her lifestyle, which saw her drop a remarkable eight stone.

Like many of us, Dawn’s attitude to fitness has been hindered thanks to the ongoing coronavrius pandemic, which left many of us turning to comfort eating.

The much-loved actress recently admitted that she feels and looks like a ‘barrel’ after piling back on seven of the eight-stone that she had worked so hard to shed.

Despite climbing close to her former weight, Dawn isn’t too bothered, saying she “doesn’t give a f**k” about how she looks or what number appears on the scales.

The outspoken telly star insisted that if she can drop eight stone once, she can do it again – but she’s not in a rush to do so anytime soon.

Shedding the pounds 2011 – 2014

Dawn first stunned fans with her remarkably slimmed down frame in 2011 after she revealed that her change in lifestyle and diet saw her drop almost ten stone.

In 2014, she revealed her dramatic weight loss was because of she had a hysterectomy after a cancer scare.

Doctors warned her she needed to lose the weight in order to have the operation with minimal recovery time.

Taking on the advice, the actress decided to kick-start her weight loss journey by taking up walking.

She also began to count calories, which saw the pounds drop off in no time.

“I became quite ill about three years ago, with all kinds of hell kicking off in here, where I keep my lady plumbing,” she said at the time.

“Anyway, I eventually went to hospital, and my doc was so convinced I had uterine cancer, that he ordered a second biopsy to be sure, when the first one was clear.

“Even before the result of the second one, I decided to be done with my old enemy, my defunct reproductive stuff. It was curtailing my life.”

Dawn explained: “So, my womb and I parted company. Goodbye. When I was due to have my hysterectomy, the doc told me that if I could lose some weight before the op, they would be able to do it via ‘key-hole’, and I would recover in three weeks or so.

“Otherwise it would be big open surgery, and three months to recover. So, I set about dropping a few stone.

“No magic wand, just tiny, joyless low-cal eating and lots more walking for weeks and weeks. It was grim. I lost seven and a half stone. I could have the keyhole surgery.

“Great. That’s all it was, practical.”

Dawn’s split from husband Lenny Henry

Dawn’s weight loss transformation came less than a year after her marriage breakdown with Lenny Henry.

At the time, her new appearance was thought to be due to her heartache and making choices to eat more healthily after a lifestyle overhaul.

Now happily married to husband Mark Bignell after the pair tied the knot in 2013, Dawn has gained back the weight she worked so hard to lose.

But thankfully, she’s not all that bothered by the gain.

The actress joked that as long as she’s fit enough to walk, her size no longer matters to her.

Gaining the weight back

Opening up about her changing size in in her new podcast French & Saunders: Titting About, Dawn explained: “I’ve gone back to being an entire barrel but do you know what, I’m going to be 63 this year, I don’t give a f**k, I really don’t, so long as I can walk.

“I’m not going to be stingy to myself anymore.”

During the candid chat, Dawn insisted that she was never unhappy with her weight – even when she was at her heaviest, and found it patronising when people would compliment her slimmed-down frame.

The telly star explained: “I never did dislike anything about my body, even when I was very, very fat. I refuse to be forced to dislike myself.

“I used to get really angry when I did lose weight, people going, ‘You look so well,’ as if you looked awful before – rewarding you for managing it, which is not easy, I accept that.

“But I didn’t want people to give me approval. It’s so patronising.”

Regardless of her size, the talented actress is happy and content in her skin.

Mirror Online have contacted Dawn’s representatives for comment.

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