Claire Richards shows off her curves in skinny jeans as she insists she's happy with her weight

By J J Anisiobi


She has faced criticism in the past from people over her weight gain.

But now Claire Richards has hit back at the comments, and insisted that she is finally at ease in her own skin.

The Steps star said she has learned to love her size 16 figure, proving the fact by stepping out wearing a pair of tight skinny jeans.

Bouncing back: Claire Richards is fighting against the internet trolls who labelled her fat and says she is happy with her size

Earlier this year, the 34-year-old star was targeted by internet trolls who labelled her a 'lazy hippo' and a 'pig'.

But despite the barrage of abuse, Claire insists that she will not punish herself and has vowed to fight back against the bullies.

Although she expected to hear a few comments about her weight, having changed significantly since her size 10 days when Steps first hit the spotlight, Claire said she had not predicted the extent of the abuse she would receive.

She told Heat magazine: 'I didn't expect the nastiness of some of the messages posted online.'


Confident girl: The Steps singer was out in London with friends and wore a pair of skinny to reinforce her point that she is happy in her own skin

Now and then: Claire has put on some considerable weight since she first became a pop star back in 1996

The most offensive comments Claire was subjected to included: 'Claire looks like she's eaten the rest of Steps' and 'Stop shoving pasties in your gob'.

She told the magazine: 'It's amazing what people feel they can say online. I used to question if I really did look disgusting.

'But I'm not going to kill myself at the gym because someone I don't know has called me fat on Twitter.'


Yo yo: Claire has battled with her weight in the past and has gone from being a size 8 to a size 20, before reaching her current size 16

Feeling good: The blonde singer was surprised at the amount of abuse she received about her weight since rejoining Steps, earlier this year

Her defiance against the faceless bullies was reinforced when she stepped out for a shopping trip in London, last week.

She dressed in a pair of unforgiving skinny jeans which showed off her full figure, teaming the tight trousers with loose black blouse and a leopard-print scarf.

The mother-of-two has consistently battled to maintain a slim figure - at her lightest she was an 8st 7lb size 8 before bulging to a 16st 7lb size 20.

Pretty woman: Claire, pictured today at the ITV London Studios, says that she has also received some positive messages about her body size

Having admitted that her yo-yo-dieting is down to her addiction to food, Claire stresses that it is like a drug to her.

Once she satisfies the craving, the void must be filled once again with more food.
Despite the hundreds of negative comments Claire has also received plenty of positive comments and support.

She said that although the trolls do make her really angry, she is comfortable in her own skin and their words don't hurt her anymore.




source:dailymail

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'I would have sex anywhere and everywhere' says Claire Richards as she tells all about her wild love life

By Fehintola Betiku


..She has opened up about crippling depression which left her house-bound for years after quitting Steps and how low she sank in the grip of an eating disorder while she was part of the group.

Now Claire Richards has opened up about her wild love life and her and how having sex in cars used to leave her covered in bruises.

Writing in her autobiography All Of Me, which has been serialised in The Sun, Claire has revealed how she once had sex at the Top Of The Pops studio and messed around with Dane Bowers.

Wild child: Claire Richards has admitted in her book that she once had sex at the Top Of The Pops studio

Reminiscing about the days when her and her now husband Reece Hill were just dating, the Steps singer told of the times when they used to get frisky in the back of his tiny MG sports car.

She said: 'Reece and I would have sex anywhere and everywhere. We were at it like you wouldn’t believe and when I look back now you’d never think we were the same couple!'

The 34-year-old even admitted that they regularly had sex in the car park of Hillingdon Tube Station and in dressing rooms whilst backstage at gigs - including Top Of The Pops.

Shocking: Claire told that she cheated on her first husband Mark Webb and shared a night with Dane Bowers

Admitting that she had never been in a hurry to lose her virginity, Claire told how being self-conscious about her image affected her confidence and she found it difficult to meet guys.

But that all changed when she met Reece who at the time was Steps' publicity manager and expecting his first child with his girlfriend.

Looking back on it now Claire explained: 'I convinced myself that I was fine with the fact that he’d had a baby, but in reality it felt constantly as though I’d had the wind sucked out of me. It was the worst feeling in the world'.

Despite the fact that Hill was in a relationship Claire still pursued him and eventually their affair was found out which led to him losing his job.

Not long after Claire and Reece separated and the singer began dating Steps' dancer Mark Webb.

Happily family: After the breakdown of her first marriage Claire was reunited with her first love Reece Hill

In her book she told how she had drunkenly told Mark she loved him and failed to fall for any of his romantic gestures even after they became husband and wife.

Claire wed Webb in 2003 but they split in 2005 after she cheated on him with Dane Bowers and fell into depression.

On her brief fling with Bowers, she revealed although they never had sex she said they kissed and had 'a bit of a fumble'.

However even though she tried to work things out with her husband they soon started living apart and it was during this period she was reunited with her first love Reece Hill.

She told of how she invited Reece over to her place and after a rendezvous she wanted out of her marriage to Webb and confessed that she had been unfaithful.

The mother of two said: 'I was fine with saying I’d committed adultery because technically I had.'

Following on from that in May 2007 she gave birth to her first child Charlie and married Reece Hill in 2008; their daughter Daisy followed a year later.


source:dailymail

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'I'm happy the way I am!' Sexy siren Claire Richards shows off her size 16 figure as she reveals she's finally accepted her curves

By Sarah Bull


Sexy Santa: Claire Richards channels screen siren Diana Dors as she dons a red sequinned gown for a new shoot and reveals she has finally accepted her size 16 curves


She's had her fair share of weight worries over the years, going from a tiny size eight to a size 20 at her heaviest since being in the public eye.

But now Steps singer Claire Richards has revealed she has finally come to terms with her figure, and is now happy with the way she looks.

The 34-year-old star, who slimmed back down to a size 10 earlier this year after following a diet and exercise regime, made the admission as she showed off her size 16 figure in a sexy sequinned gown for Closer magazine.


Claire said: 'This Christmas is about celebrating my fab year. I finally feel my weight isn’t the first thing on everyone’s lips – it’s all about Steps and where I’m heading in the future.

'I’m happy the way I am – I’m just me. If the likes of Diana Dors and Marilyn Monroe can be curvy but still sexy, I’ll happily have them as role models!'

Claire recently revealed she has put on two stone since she had gone down to a size 10, simply because she found her new regime too difficult to maintain.


Heyday: At the height of Steps' fame, Claire was just 8st 6lbs and a tiny size eight

Changing shapes: Claire has yo-yoed between 10 and 15 stone over the past couple of years


She explained: 'I desperately want the focus on my voice than my size. Keeping the weight off it where I struggle.

'To stay a size 10, I was having to think about dieting all the time, and that's no way to live.'

Claire's revelation that she has finally accepted the way she looks comes as welcome news after the mother-of-one's admission last month that she was struggling with her body image.

She said at the time: 'I don’t know if I’ll ever be truly happy with myself, but I’ll give it my best shot.

'The important thing is to be comfortable whatever my size. I’m sure I’ll get bigger and smaller again over the next few years.'

Richards has been thrust back into the spotlight following the TV hit Steps Reunion, with the band enjoying their Greatest Hits album going to number one and an upcoming sold-out tour.

But she admits she was wary of the reunion, fearing it would bring up old issues regarding the pressure she felt to be thin during Steps' heyday in the Nineties.

Steps will embark on a tour in April, and added extra dates after their initial 14-night run sold out in a day.

It will kick off at Belfast's Odyssey Arena on April 2 and will conclude at the O2 in London on April 19.





source:dailymail

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