Charlie King

Charlie King is a prominent British model, TV presenter, and reality TV star, best known for his role on “The Only Way Is Essex” (TOWIE), where he appeared from series 4 2012. Beyond his reality TV fame, he has modeled for top brands like Calvin Klein, Emporio Armani, and Tommy Hilfiger. Charlie is also an advocate for mental health awareness and body positivity, having publicly shared his struggles with body dysmorphia and coming out as gay during a live interview on ITV’s “This Morning” We chat about all of this, his fashion brand and more.

LETS PLAY A GAME OF WOULD YOU RATHER...

Would you rather work exclusively for 1 brand for the rest of your career or work with a new brand every year?

I think I would like to work with a new brand every single year. I am all about things that evolve and how things change - having my own brand I realise it is so hard to try to reinvent. Even in the music or film industry, something that is flavour of the month one year or during one year, the next year it might not work. I guess if I could get the chance of being “what’s hot” and “what’s fresh” I would do that.

Would you rather never be able to lift weights again but always stay fit, or lift weights daily but never achieve your fitness goals?

How can you do that to me as a fitness coach! Honestly, the importance of lifting weights I have really understood in recent years. Now that I am getting a bit older, I realise that if you can lift weights there is an element of fitness in that anyway so you are kind of killing two birds, and muscle mass is so important as you get older, so the weights have got to stay.

Would you rather live in a luxury apartment in London or a beachfront villa in the Caribbean?

My personality says both! However, I am a beach guy - I need the water around me more often than I need the city around me. If I could be on the beach on the Caribbean and get all of that energy around me from the ocean I would be happy. I like a rustic and polished way of life - I have done a bit of the whole luxury living thing and it is nice but it can be a little bit soulless.

Would you rather have a million Instagram followers or a highly influential YouTube fitness channel with fewer followers?

I would go for a million followers. If they were real followers I think that a million followers on Instagram is quite a powerful thing.

Snog, Marry, Avoid - TOWIE

Edition

Mark Wright, Gemma Collins, Bobby Norris

I would probably snog Mark Wright - I have never snogged him before and I am not sure if he would be a good kisser or not to be honest, but he is a good looking boy and the original TOWIE man and I think we all have a bit of a crush on Mark, even straight men. They all want to be Mark, all of the girls want to be around him and obviously he has got a beautiful wife as well, so I think he is quite credible.

I would marry Bobby because obviously he was a very good friend of mine, I haven’t seen him in recent years but we got on very, very well. Being two gay guys and understanding our lifestyle, being proper about things like hygiene and cleanliness - just how we like to live, we were very similar.

I think I have got to avoid the GC.

Fan Questions

Afraser84 asks - What are the key factors in achieving a healthy body and mind and how do you get harmony between the two?

That’s a good question. Obviously your mental and physical journey have got to work in tandem. I think it is really important that first and foremost you take action with whatever it is you need to do. Over the years I have worked on myself, I have had my highs and my lows. The actions of exercise and keeping fit, having that accountability has kept me going in many ways. As I have progressed on and learnt a lot about myself it is now all about having that balance and not putting yourself under the pressure, not looking at exercise as something negative or a tedious task. You have to try to find ways that make it enjoyable and sustainable so that you keep that habit up, and then all of the bi-products around that, your mental health, how you feel about yourself, your confidence it will all connect. That is the beautiful thing about fitness is people really give it that thought and so that is what I try to advocate now. I don’t always get it right, sometimes I am quite hard on myself, but then you have to check yourself in the mirror and say “Remember what you are doing this for?” And I find my level with it again.

Elitewellnewsswarriors wants to know - what steps do you take daily to ensure you maintain a healthy relationship with yourself?

I think how you talk to yourself is really important. I recently bought an apartment in Essex and my bed is next to my sliding, mirrored wardrobes. So as I roll out of bed the mirror is right in front of me. So, even when I have messy hair and I look like an absolute sack of crap, I always look at myself and say “Right, we are going to smash today, this is going to be a good day, the start to a good week, we’ve got this!” And we just start with these positive formations and attitudes - without sounding corny I think it is really important that you just have a few seconds to say “come on” because that changes the mindset instead of waking up sluggish and picking yourself apart. I may look terrible but you have to just override that and say “come on, let’s go”. Joe Wright asks - do you look at what you’ve achieved with pride?

That one is still a work in progress. I don’t think I always process what it is I have done because I am always thinking about what is next. I think that is something that I am quite guilty of because of the pressure that I put on myself. I think that I always need to be at the top of the tree or keep moving with the times and sometimes I don’t savour or relish the progress that I have made or the achievements that I have made in that moment, However when I do look back, and I am in quite a reflective place right now because of my birthday coming up and getting to the end of my 30’s, where I look back over the last 10 years and I think what a journey it has been and there have been some real achievements in that. I am trying to focus more on this on a daily basis and moving forward, but there have been some really important wins in my life.

James/David/Espie asks can he see you on TV any time soon and is there anyone special in your life?

There is someone special in my life at the minute, there are actually a few people - I have been mingling and it is going nicely, we keep it nice and steady and we will see what happens.

With regards to the TV side of things, maybe. The TV game is hard and I have done many castings and been up for many different things and it hasn’t quite worked out which can be quite challenging at times and can affect your confidence a little bit. There are a couple of things bubbling away and we will see. I believe I will be back on TV sometime in the future for sure.

Interview

Charlie, you gained fame on “The Only Way Is Essex”. You have been vocal over the years about your thoughts of the show and reality TV, can you look back at it fondly and tell us of any big regrets?

When you look back at TOWIE when it first started around 12 years ago, I think I was on it within the first year. It really was a show of its time and it was an amazing opportunity, and obviously we all went in not really understanding what this game was, we were all new to it, there was an organic feel about it and we just rode the wave. It was very unique. When you are at this stage in life and you look back you think “Wow, that was wild!” Whilst there is duty of care now and a lot more awareness in relation to reality stars and making sure that everyone is being looked after we were really put into the fire pit and just had to figure a way out. So it was unique but it actually was amazing. I saw Chloe Sims, who starred on the show with me, at an event last week and we were just reminiscing about it and we would love to go back, just for that reunion aspect to revisit that time when it was so special.

No real regrets apart from when I look back at my coming out journey and I didn’t come out on the show. Maybe I should have come out on TOWIE as opposed to coming out on This Morning as a loyalty to the show angle, but equally is wasn’t the right time so I can’t see it as a regret.

There is so much drama going on around Strictly, what are your thoughts on it and in terms of being in the show have you ever been asked?

I have never been asked to do Strictly, I think you have got to be at a certain level to be put on that show. I do love to dance - if you look back at some of my TOWIE days, even though the dancing was questionable, I do love to dance and I am a big fan of music and dance. With regards to all of the controversy around it, I just hope that they do their investigations and they can sort out whatever it is they need to sort out, clear the decks with it, and let it just come back to let it be what it is, which is a staple entertainment show which most of us love. It is a big part of our rundown to Christmas and it is fantastic to see the dancers flourish. It is a shame it has got this cloud over it at the minute, if they called and asked me to go on it right now, I would go in a flash. I would love to do it, but we’ll see. Never say never, maybe one day we could have a chat and I could be saying “I’m on it”.

You have been so fortunate modeling for brands like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. What is your most memorable experience? And on the flipside, have you ever been asked to do things or wear things that you just had to refuse?

I mean when I did some of those underwear campaigns they were quite risky and exposing, which at the time I was quite fearless and happy to get involved. Obviously I transformed my body and I was getting quite a lot of recognition for that. I had done Men’s Health magazine and I had got a real reputation for my physique changing which was great, and for the first time ever I felt very sexy, but I have to say, when you are on those shoots and are put in skimpy pants… I remember when I was asked to wear a jockstrap for an underwear brand and I just couldn’t do it, even though I was quite happy to do the naked shoots for Attitude and Gay Times, there was something about putting a jockstrap on that I just couldn’t get my head around and I wouldn’t do it. I don’t know why, I just didn’t want to do it.

Fitness, Personal Training etc has been a big part of your life, what is it about it that you love and have you achieved your personal goals or are things forever evolving?

I got the opportunity to shoot for Men’s Health magazine and that was a real eye opener to what goes into getting a good body. Whilst it was quite an intense and extreme transformation program which in reality you couldn’t sustain because it was literally eat, breath and sleep for fitness for around 6 to 8 weeks. My whole life was consumed by the workouts, the food, the recovery, the rest, the sports massages, getting ready to shred for the shoot the whole week prior it really was a lot. While it was a great experience it was just a huge eyeopener into what athletes and cover models go through. However, the catalyst was to continue because I felt really good about myself and my physique looked amazing and I was really proud of it. I guess the social media interest and the work that started coming in off the back of it really opened up my eyes and I realised there’s something in this in my career, for sure. I then started the PT courses because I really got the bug for it and I knew that it would be a great way to continue my journey and it has been a saviour for me. It has been great when I’ve noticed media work comes in because you get some real low points in this game when you don’t get the gigs. The PT and the fitness stuff has been a real bread and butter - I am going to work, I am working with other people, getting to learn about other people’s needs and I’ve got to work with some amazing people such as celebrities. It has really opened a door for me to do different things and of course as I am getting older what my needs and wants are now about balance and looking after my body as I go into a slightly older age. I am realising what’s important and what I want moving forward and I will continue to share that as I evolve and grow and get old!

Tell us about your 360 Fitness Plan and how can people get your help?

It would be lovely to see your reader’s get involved. Obviously there is a lot of online coaching out there and it is quite a saturated market but over the years I have had quite a bit of success with personal training clients and obviously people responding to my content, my visuals and my physique. It felt like the right time to put all of my knowledge together and come up with a plan that is accessible and realistic. You can factor it into your workouts, you can pick and choose what you want to do, but ultimately there is 6 weeks of a great plan that has separate handbooks and video libraries where you can see how to do the exercises. I think the whole point for me is that some people think that they have to go to the gym for an hour and a half to two hours, however if you workout well and you workout tactically and have a structure to it, you can get in and get out and still get great results, as well as fuelling your body correctly and doing all of the other bits. I have just put it all into one thing and people are really enjoying it which its lovely to see.

You’ve been open about your struggles with body dysmorphia. Many people resort to self harm in various forms and feel unable to communicate, for anyone struggling have you any words of advice? I have done quite a lot in this space because with everything that has gone on in my life, especially around Covid, I realised that BDD was very prevalent in me and after having therapy, understanding what it was and putting everything out there, I found so much peace knowing that so many other people have struggled with it and that I wasn’t alone. This always goes back to what I say moving forward, I stand by a mantra through sharing and you can find a common ground. The one thing that I always tell people to do, whether it’s in regard to sexuality, things that are on their mind, maybe they are struggling with their body image, is that those feelings are valid. There is help out there, but obviously to get help you need to vocalise and express how you feel and it is about choosing the right people or the right resources. Just remember there is help, because every time that I have bottled things up and it becomes like a pressure cooker in my head, that is when I have made the wrong decisions and probably suffered more than I have needed to. As soon as I open up, share things and decompress that valve things instantly feel better. It might not be instant in a sense of getting the answers but you just realise ”OMG, I was really holding onto a lot there” and slowly but surely you can work things out.

I felt so embarrassed about the BDD because I felt like it was self obsession, I was vain and attention seeking, playing a victim, but actually when I put how I was feeling out there and how it made me feel, it all made sense into this shame that I felt and then I realised that there was nothing to feel bad about and that my feelings are valid. It is a very common thing and it really does affect people, and body image really affects mental health. That is why I spoke in Parliament and spoke publicly about it - it’s been a very positive thing and they have taken note which is great.

We have to talk about your Fashion - I have a few of your top’s and have to say the quality is amazing and the sizing is perfect. I was actually wearing one of your Tee’s yesterday and got a few compliments - so thanks lol - was coming up with your own brand always a dream/plan?

Thank you for those compliments because it really is a labour of love, a lot of work and as you know, fashion is very saturated. At the lower point in my life a few years ago I really was not in the best place, in the depths of my BDD and I was off social media and feeling very, very flat. A PT client of mine worked in fashion and we had spoke about things for a while and I just called her up one day and I said “I really want to try to do some T-Shirts, that’s where I want to start with this”, and she was like “Well, we’ve got time”. We were all locked in at home and we started the work whilst we were all coming out of those lockdowns and it just became a trial and error exercise. We launched 4 or 5 t-shirts to start with, just to see… I had this mantra of how I wanted to own my crown again, I wanted to feel confident and empowered, and even though I wasn’t in the best place at that time I know by wearing that crown it was just my little idea of you own who you are, your individuality, your flaws and when you put that t-shirt on you can just feel empowered. That was the motivation behind it and slowly, slowly, slowly, and it has been a very slow process, we’ve built collections and we are getting out there to people like yourself, people that get it they really like it, and we have got a very loyal customer fan base and we will just continue. Fashion is a big, big industry and it is something that I am learning on the go. We are just taking it slow and steady, I have to be sensible about it, and I also really enjoy it. I used to get sent a lot of rubbish in the mail such as fast fashion and I remember looking at them and thinking “I don’t want to promote them, this is not what I stand for”, and I also want to be as environmentally conscious as possible which I try to do in the best way that I can.

How important is being green and sustainable? I think that we all have a duty of care now to the environment. Whilst we all know there is a long way to go and there are certain things that you cannot avoid as a fashion brand owner it’s about making those conscious decisions to leave as little footprint as possible. That means sourcing the right material, making sure what we give is quality so people do not have to buy as often, it’s about using recycled packaging when we send it out, it’s about using the right factories that look after their staff and just trying to be very aware in whichever way possible.

I have had a few investors come my way saying “you need to scrap that model” and I just say “no way, I am not here for fast cash and to leave more damage on this planet”.

There is a sale on atm if people get over to bycharlesking.com - 50% off of items - does this mean that new lines are coming soon? Yes! Every year I do a Leo season sale, I am all about the Leo energy as I am a Leo. Because we are a small brand we don’t hone in on many sales to be truthful, so we wait until a special occasion such as my birthday month, so these coming weeks we are doing our sale and we are also incorporating the 360 fitness plan into that if you want to buy it. Now we are starting to work towards Autumn - we have got some new colours and things coming - we go at our own pace and we are not governed by Seasons as such. We just do what we can within our resources.

It’s 10 years next month since you came out as gay on live TV. What prompted you to share your story on “This Morning,” and how has it affected your personal and professional life?

It was an organic journey to get there. I remember when I did it that day and thereafter it all made sense to me why it took me so long and why I hadn’t said anything before. If I was going to do it, that seemed to be the absolute right way to do it. People followed my story on TOWIE for a good few years, there were a lot of questions around who I was, my sexuality. I was saying things that people couldn’t grasp at that time because I don’t believe in labeling and I think you should have the space and experience to explore who you are without defining yourself and whilst now I think that would be more accepted, back then it was quite new to hear and it put me right in the firing line of who I was and what my identity was. So, going on This Morning and having that moment to speak my truth and explain things, it was a defining moment for me and it really led the way for how I was going to move forward in the media and how the LGBTQ community was going to embrace me and my positioning within the community.

I think it shows that all of our journeys are different and that is the beautiful thing about this. I have had so many guys approaching me about coming out later and struggling, maybe being in relationships with girls and trying their best to be anything other than what they really are if you like, and finally they have seen my YouTube clip or they have found out about me in some way, and they see something similar. It is a real honour to be an example and I still get so many lovely messages on the back of that interview from people who might be searching for answers, and to me that is ‘job done’ that was an amazing opportunity that I still hold very closely. I still can’t believe that was 10 years ago!

Social media can literally destroy people. How do you handle the pressures of public perception and media scrutiny?

Social media trolls? You would think by now the noise would have been drowned out, but we know more than ever now things are at crisis point with what people say, how things are spread, the no filter on things and I know we keep hearing it but I don’t know how we keep action on it as such. There has just got to be more around this element of social media companies taking more accountability for what is out there and how people suffer at the hands of people who feel they can say and do what they want and it causes this knock on effect. Psychologically or the things that are happening in the news right now with what is happening on the back of social media and fake news, it is just a mess and it is really hard to drown out that negativity. Recently, I was in Mykonos doing beach shots, and I was feeling confident, and then I got this message which said “I thought you had body image issues and you are parading around” calling me contradictory and that kind of stuff and I just thought “What the hell is this and what is the negativity about?”. It does get you for a minute but then you just have to think “Hang on, NO!”. You can’t control what other people say and do, it is hard and it doesn’t get any easier truthfully, but you do become thicker skinned to it. The good outweighs the bad for me personally, which I am very fortunate about, but ultimately there needs to be a way that this stuff is filtered and it is down to these tech giants to figure it out.

You’ve a milestone next year - The Big 40 - how do you feel about it and any plans on how you will celebrate it?

Tbh, age does bother me a little bit. I don’t want to be that guy, but I think it just really highlights a ‘time’ aspect and obviously time we have no control over and how quickly it all goes. That freaks me out slightly, but equally you have to live in the moment and you have to try to enjoy everything that is happening now and in the present. So I’m just working on staying as fit and as healthy as possible and being a great example for a guy in his late 30’s/early 40’s to show that you can still be really fit, happy and healthy and to continue this journey that I am on in the best possible way. I would absolutely love to do something really fun within the media - I would love to do a show where I would be part of a group and really tested me physically or sent me on an adventure in some way, shape or form. That kind of stuff would be cool because I have a lot of skills and other than that just to keep growing my brand and see where life takes me. My life is quite random so I like random!

What upcoming projects or goals are you most excited about, both in your personal life and professional career?

I am working on my brand and fitness. I have casted for a TV show, but I cannot say which one yet because it hasn’t happened. But if it goes anywhere I will mention it, but that’s all bubbling away, and it may happen this side of Christmas.

I’m just a tad older than you and new to parenting. I have been fostering a little boy now for 6 months, do you see children in your future?

I have to be honest, I don’t think so. I very nearly became a stepfather within my first relationship and it just didn’t work out, which is one of those things. I love children, my sister has got two boys and my nephews are everything, but from where I am at right now I don’t see it. Also, with the state of the world and I am a bit of a worrier I think I would be a nervous wreck being a parent. But, who knows, as I get older my needs and wants might change, but it is not on my plan for the immediate future.

Assuming the next time we speak will be before your 50th in 10 years - where would you like to be both professionally and personally?

I was a massive fan of Paul O’Grady and I got to meet him a good few times before he passed away. The way he was living his life within the countryside and looking after animals and he had the whole set up going on. I really love the idea of country living and being amongst nature, that kind of vibe. Also maybe having my own studio or gym because obviously the fitness will never leave me, I know that. I would just like a chilled way of life - countryside or the beach life, travelling and just being content and happy, that would be the goal.

Final words of advice for anyone struggling with their demons?

At the end of the day we are all going to struggle at some point or another, it is just part and parcel of life. I can’t stress enough the importance of expressing how you feel knowing that we all have to go through stuff, we all need to speak up at some point. The help is there and you will see that as soon as you do open up about things and I think that has just been my biggest lesson over the course of the years, is that I live in so much fear and shame for many, many years all because of how I fabricated things in my head, and actually none of them came to fruition, everything that I was building up didn’t happen. That is the importance of anything that is bringing you down, to just let it out, speak it out, and realise there are people around you.

Thanks a lot Charlie

Interview with Daniel May