Miquita Oliver shares shame over Fearne Cotton feud
The broadcaster has reflected on the interview that cost her a BBC Radio 1 job, revealing how a heartfelt message from Fearne Cotton years later helped the pair finally put the past behind them.
Miquita Oliver has publicly apologised to Fearne Cotton after reflecting on the bitter feud that led to her being dismissed from BBC Radio 1.
Admitting she has carried shame over the incident for years before the pair eventually reconciled, the broadcaster, 42, said revisiting the episode had been “really healing”, crediting Fearne, 44, with reaching out during a difficult period in her life.
Celebrity Gogglebox regular Miquita spoke about the fallout during a recent episode of Miss Me?, the podcast she co-hosts with Jordan Stephens.
Looking back on the controversy that surrounded her early broadcasting career, Miquita revealed she was dismissed from BBC Radio 1 after criticising Fearne in an interview with NME when she was 20.
The presenter, who first found fame as a teenager hosting Popworld, said the consequences followed her for years before the pair were eventually able to move on.
Opening up about the incident, Miquita said: “I would like to tell the story of me and Fearne Cotton.
“I did an interview in NME and I wasn’t very nice about her at all. I was awful about her and I was fired from Radio 1 because of it, so I lived in a lot of consequence.”
Miquita explained she had been “really ashamed” of what happened for “a long time”, describing the relationship between the two presenters as “tumultuous”.
She said at the time she and Fearne were not on good terms, although she now believes the situation stemmed largely from her own behaviour.
Miquita added: “I don’t even think she didn’t like me but because I’d been so awful about her she stayed away from me.”
The pair later found themselves crossing paths again when television presenter Steve Jones, who worked alongside Miquita on T4, began a relationship with Fearne.
Miquita said: “I’d see her all the time. We were civil but it was a little bit uncomfortable, but it was OK.”
More than a decade later, Miquita said Fearne unexpectedly contacted her after watching a clip from Miss Me? in which she spoke emotionally about the way she had been treated by sections of the press.
She said: “(Fearne) sent me a message on Instagram when I was having a f****** awful time.
“She said, ‘Hey Miquita, I just watched a clip of you talking about how the press used to refer to you and it resonated deeply. I just wanted to say thank you for opening up about it. Sending love’.”
Miquita said receiving the message had marked a turning point.
She added the message was “really healing”, adding: “I didn’t mean to be awful to her. I was unkind and it wasn’t me.”
Fearne, best known for presenting programmes including Top of the Pops, Celebrity Juice and her Happy Place podcast, has also been in the headlines over the past year following her separation from husband Jesse Wood.
Miquita said she replied to Fearne’s message and said she wished her well following her split from Jesse.
She added: “It was all love.”
