News | Entertainment
8 Jan 2026 11:26
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Gail Porter's daughter is "more like a mother" to her

    The 54-year-old presenter - who has 22-year-old Honey with ex-husband Dan Hipgrave - is always open with her child about the ups and downs she's experienced in her life and while she can behave like a "big child", her offspring keeps her on the right path.


    Gail exclusively told BANG Showbiz: "I share everything with Honey. There are no secrets at all. And she is a bit more like a mother to me.

    "I'll go, 'Yay. Let's go do this.' She went, 'I don't think so, Mum.' You go, 'Oh, right, OK, sorry.'

    "So she still thinks I'm a big child at heart. We've talked about everything, and I think that's really important. I just like her to know that I'm there, I'm not going to judge her. She's super great."

    Although Gail and Honey have a "lovely relationship", the former Top of the Pops host admitted her daughter likes to have some space and doesn't enjoy staying with her.

    She said: "Honey's 22 now, working, has a lovely boyfriend, and comes to stay at my house whenever she feels like it.

    "She said, 'It's quite annoying staying with you.' And I was like, 'Well, hang on a minute. You're not paying any rent. That's really good, isn't it? No.' I'm not cool enough!

    "But no, it's great. We've got a lovely relationship. She's a friend, and I'm very fortunate because I do miss my mom. I lost my mom when she was 60, so it was a long time ago.

    And Gail is grateful her daughter is much more "level-headed" than she ever was.

    She said: "She's pretty level-headed. I see shiny things and I'm off. I'm like, 'Oh, let's do this. Let's do that.' She's very sensible with no, pros and cons - it's a bit Ab Fab. I'm like Edina going, 'Woo hoo!'

    "I get very excited about nothing."

    Gail makes light of her experiences of depression and being sectioned in her stand-up comedy and she's found it has made people more "comfortable" talking to her about her difficulties.

    She said: "When you go through things like being sectioned, I had no one to talk to about it, and no one had gone through it - well, I didn't think anybody had gone through it.

    "And then when I started making jokes about it, it made people more comfortable talking to me about it, going, 'Oh, actually, what was it like?'

    "And then when I brought it up in my stand-up, I started off going, 'Hands up, who's been sectioned?'

    "Usually people go, 'What?' But then this one woman went, 'Me!' And I went, 'Oh, excellent.' She went, 'Seven times.' It's the number of people who actually get a conversation out of it."

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     08 Jan: Deryck Whibley says he's in the best shape of his life - more than a decade after a health crisis that nearly killed him
     08 Jan: Sarah Shahi felt like she went through her split from her Sex/Life co-star Adam Demos twice
     08 Jan: Jamie Lynn Spears says her beauty secrets are "good lighting, tons of make-up and pounds of fake hair"
     08 Jan: Paul Mescal is ready to start "rationing" his work
     08 Jan: George Clooney has hit out at Donald Trump after the president criticised the actor for obtaining French citizenship
     08 Jan: Kelly Osbourne is "devastated" following the death of her make-up artist pal Jasen Kaplan
     08 Jan: Aaron Phypers' mother has reportedly pleaded for financial help for her son, in a new GoFundMe
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    It's au revoir for AJ Lam after the upcoming Super Rugby season More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Warner Bros has again rejected a hostile takeover bid from media conglomerate Paramount, telling shareholders to stick with Netflix's rival offer More...



     Today's News

    National:
    Trump wants Greenland. Europe’s tepid response is putting NATO and global security at risk 11:17

    Soccer:
    Advantage Arsenal in football's Premier League - after one of their closest rivals dropped points for a third straight game 11:07

    Entertainment:
    Deryck Whibley says he's in the best shape of his life - more than a decade after a health crisis that nearly killed him 10:53

    Accident and Emergency:
    One person's seriously injured after a glue drum exploded at an industrial site near Motueka 10:47

    National:
    Stephen Miller: portrait of Donald Trump’s ideologue-in-chief 10:37

    National:
    Why grieving a pet can be as hard as grieving a person 10:27

    Cricket:
    England's Jacob Bethell's clinging to hope of an improbable consolation win as an Ashes test prepares to enter a fifth day for the first time this series 10:27

    Entertainment:
    Sarah Shahi felt like she went through her split from her Sex/Life co-star Adam Demos twice 10:23

    National:
    Think society is in decline? Research gives us some reasons to be cheerful 10:17

    Living & Travel:
    X is facilitating nonconsensual sexual AI-generated images. The law – and society – must catch up 10:07


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2026 New Zealand City Ltd