Presenter Lynn Faulds Wood on her perfect weekend in Surrey

By Matthew Williams on November 26th 2009

Originally published in Surrey Life magazine November 2009

Television personality Lynn Faulds Wood lives with her husband John Stapleton, also a presenter, in St Margarets near Richmond. Come the weekend, they like to relax by grabbing a bite to eat, taking a leisurely walk along the river or frequenting the local shops

Weekends at home are precious to us because, during the week, my husband John Stapleton has to get up at 3.30am to present GMTV’s News Hour from 6am. And I often spend weekends at cancer conferences around Europe – for the last seven years I’ve been president of the European Cancer Patient Coalition.

We love to eat out on a Friday night – it might be Rock & Rose in Kew Road, Richmond (glamorous and lively); Parvinu near St Margarets station (busy, buzzy, eat and drink as much or as little as you like); or Brula in Crown Road, St Margarets (lovely food, beautifully cooked).

I go for a walk every day – I’m trying to live to be 250 – sometimes with a walking club of friends, which meets in Marble Hill Park in Twickenham early every morning. The route is always the same – briskly along the river to Richmond and back. John and I met in the Roebuck pub on Richmond Hill and the river walk has a great view of Richmond Hill and brings back lovely memories of evenings in the Roebuck.

At weekends, John will often come for a walk, too – favourite for now is across Kew Lock (a little jewel of beautifully ornate buildings that most people probably haven’t noticed – well worth a visit), then down the river to Kew. We usually cross the Green and take the bus back. I once took John for a walk through Mogden Sewage Works in Isleworth – he’s never forgiven me.

On Saturday afternoons, we’ll often end up in Richmond – me at Helena’s Open Book buying the latest tome for my book club; John at Waitrose, his favourite supermarket. John likes to do the shopping and when I go to Waitrose, the lovely ladies on the tills usually ask: “Where’s John today?”

Family get-togethers
I grew up in Scotland on the banks of Loch Lomond with a brother and two sisters – amazingly, we all moved to Surrey and live within 50 minutes of each other. We often go for walks all together – Virginia Water is a favourite, especially in spring when the azaleas and rhododendrons are in full show-off colour. The Wheatsheaf restaurant and pub, handily by the car park, is a good gathering place for lunch before the walk.

We used to live on Richmond Hill but now we’re down in St Margarets. The area has a great village atmosphere and at weekends you’ll often find us in the lovely local shops – and pubs. You can buy anything in Cutters – I keep trying to catch Simon out but haven’t yet succeeded. Gift is perfect for last-minute presents as is Denham & Finney. John often wears Burkitt suits on TV and The Bead & Jewellery Shop has just re-strung several of my necklaces. What a great place to live!

On a Sunday, I might spend a bit of time catching up with some paperwork for my charity – Lynn’s Bowel Cancer Campaign – which is based in St Margarets. Eighteen years ago, I survived advanced bowel cancer when John and I were the presenters of the BBC’s Watchdog programme. My son was just three. We’ve heard from many people around Surrey who say that through our work with the charity, we’ve helped to save their lives from this common cancer. 

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