Mollie Pearce on life after bowel surgery and what she really thinks about The Traitors’ Harry Clark ahead of DOI debut

FROM being betrayed by her best friend, to nabbing one of the most coveted spots on TV, it’s been one hell of a year for Mollie Pearce.

Last January, nearly 7 million people tuned in to the finale of the second series of The Traitors, as Harry Clark convinced the former healthcare assistant that he was a fellow Faithful, before stealing the £95,150 prize pot.

Now, one year on, Mollie is coming out on top – after joining the latest series of ITV’s Dancing On Ice.

“After The Traitors, life went a bit crazy,” says Bristol-born Mollie. “I was working in a hospital before I went on the show, so to go from that to Dancing On Ice, even now I find it hard to get my head around.

“It’s something you can only dream about. It’s crazy how things work out.”

Crazy indeed. Two weeks into learning the skating basics with a local coach, Mollie tumbled on the ice and fractured her left wrist, meaning her first four weeks of training with her American professional partner Colin Grafton were spent off-rink.

She’s subsequently struggled to overcome a fear of falling over again.

“It’s definitely been the most difficult part of the experience to date,” says Mollie, 22. “At times, I was really upset I wasn’t on the ice.

“It was difficult waiting for the green light and I felt like I was behind the others.

“It’s obviously very tough physically and mentally, too.

“When you have a fall, you can get [trapped] in your own head, so we’ve been really working on that. Colin’s been so supportive.”

And ITV has been constantly offering help, too, Mollie says. This year, the channel has implemented measures to protect DOI contestants’ wellbeing, following the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing bullying scandal.

“We have helplines if we feel we need to talk,” explains Mollie. “A really good team of people are always at the end of the phone and they’ve been a real help.”

No stranger to conquering hurdles, for years Mollie has lived with a “double whammy” of disability.

Born with several fingers missing from her right hand, which doctors discovered during her hairdresser mum Sally’s pregnancy, she describes a childhood where her limb difference “wasn’t really a big thing”.

Growing up, while her older brother Sam, now 26, encouraged her to be as active as he was, Mollie’s mum and painter-decorator dad Steve frequently left her to figure out things in her own way, which she says, helped her to “smash life”.

But aged 11, Mollie faced an even tougher challenge when she was diagnosed with the bowel condition ulcerative colitis, which causes inflammation and ulcers in the colon.

“I struggled to leave the house, because I had bad anxiety about not making it to the toilet in time, which I sometimes didn’t when I was really ill,” recalls Mollie.

‘I was so upset I couldn’t get on the ice’

At the age of 18, she underwent seven hours of surgery to remove her colon and divert the end of her small bowel through a hole in her stomach, known as a stoma. A stoma bag then collects the waste.

In the UK, more than 200,000 people are living with a stoma, according to Colostomy UK, including ex-Made In Chelsea star Louise Thompson and radio DJ Adele Roberts, who competed in last year’s Dancing On Ice and is, says Mollie, “such an inspiration”.

“At any age, it’s hard to accept that you might need surgery, especially when it’s to do with your bowels. People tend to not want to talk about it, because it’s about poo,” says Mollie.

“But once I’d recovered a little and adapted to having the stoma bag, my life quickly improved. I was no longer in pain or anxious when I left the house, because I knew I wasn’t going to have an accident. That massively improved my confidence.

“The first time I went out with my dad to a McDonald’s drive-thru [after having the stoma], I remember not feeling panicked about needing the toilet. It was magic.

“I spent a lifetime with my body betraying me, because it was always fighting against me, and even though I still have days when I struggle mentally, I’m now celebrating new life and new health.

“Going out for a curry and a glass of wine feels amazing, because four years ago, I couldn’t. Pre-surgery, I wouldn’t have been able to do a show like The Traitors or Dancing On Ice. It feels like a massive accomplishment to show people there is life after bowel surgery.”

After opening up about her health battles during the penultimate episode of The Traitors, Mollie received an influx of messages from fans.

“Some people were having stoma surgery the next day, or in hospital recovering afterwards. I’ve felt it before when I’ve seen people on TV and felt represented, so it was a massive thing to be able to show that you don’t need to let [a stoma bag] stop you from living. I don’t want anyone else to ever feel alone and ashamed, because they shouldn’t.

“When I hear how much it’s meant to people to see me on TV being strong, that it’s helped them love their bodies again, love their differences and even their stoma bag, that’s had a huge impact on me.”

‘I had some nasty comments about my hand during The Traitors’

Even before The Traitors, Mollie – who nicknames her stoma bag “Sid” and celebrates her ”stomaversary” every year on October 4 – was improving visibility for those with disabilities through her social media content and modelling.

She has worked for global brands, including Tommy Hilfiger, Kurt Geiger, and Adidas, as well as appearing in Vogue Portugal’s New Beginnings issue in 2021, and is now an ambassador for the charities Crohn’s & Colitis UK and Reach, which is a charity supporting children with upper limb difference.

Following in the footsteps of Adele Roberts and Paralympic sprinter Libby Clegg who, in 2020, became Dancing On Ice’s first blind contestant, Mollie hopes her skating journey will show other disabled people that there doesn’t need to be any barriers to achieving goals.

Yet being a telly icon also has its downsides, which Mollie discovered when The Traitors aired and she received a barrage of abuse from online trolls – first for trusting Harry, but also, shockingly, for her physical differences.

“My hand has never really been a big issue for me and neither is my stoma, so when I had a couple of nasty comments about that, it shocked me,” says Mollie, who coped with the abuse by briefly removing herself from social media.

“I tried to rise above it. I kept reminding myself that these people see a certain version of me, but they don’t know me personally. I just had to remember who I am.”

And Mollie reckons she’s a better person these days, thanks to the influence of fellow Faithful “Queen Diane” Carson.

“Diane had a massive impact on me,” she says of the iconic retired teacher turned Celebrity MasterChef star. “We used to chat and she’d say: ‘You just need to tell people what you think.’ She’s such a strong, powerful woman, she helped me to be a little stronger.”

Mollie also credits the show’s host Claudia Winkleman for being “lovely and supportive”.

“We called her ‘Mummy Clauds’ because she felt like such a safe person. Even since the show, she’s been amazing. We had a nice little catch-up on socials.”

‘Harry and I didn’t even think about romance’

Mollie was initially approached by the show’s team to compete in series one of The Traitors, which she declined in favour of travelling to Greece and Croatia to build her confidence post-surgery, with her then-boyfriend Max Backwell.

The pair split in October, after three years together.

“The relationship came to its natural end and we’re still friends, so it’s the best it could have been,” smiles Mollie, although viewers were convinced she could have developed feelings for army engineer Harry, had they both been single during the three weeks of filming The Traitors in the Scottish Highlands.

“No,” insists Mollie, shaking her head. “I don’t think we were even thinking about it, to be honest. It was such a big talking point just because of the way the end played out.”

In the final banishment ceremony, does she regret voting for account manager Jaz Singh instead of Harry, whose name she started to write down before changing her mind – a heart-over-head decision that cost her half the jackpot?

“Obviously, there’s going to be a part of you that does have regrets, but I’m not going to beat myself up about it for the rest of my life. Everyone played an amazing game.”

Insisting her friendship with Harry is “still there”, Mollie says: “Everyone’s doing different things with their lives.” So the Traitors’ family only get to catch up at events like the National Television Awards in September last year, where the show won Best Reality Competition.

Getting my own place is something I’ve thought about, I’m just not sure where I want to go yet.

Mollie Pearce

“That was a pinch-me moment,” Mollie says. “It was crazy to be invited, let alone win, and there were famous people everywhere.

“We bumped into Declan Donnelly, who I’ve grown up watching on TV, and I got a photo with him. I was super-starstruck. It was wild!”

Mollie is one of millions glued to the new series of The Traitors, which began on New Year’s Day, watching from her new home near the Dancing On Ice rink at Bovingdon Airfield in Hertfordshire, where the live shows are filmed.

“I’m relocating for a couple of months,” she says of the move, which is her first time living away from home for an extended time.

“As a family, we’re really close, so it will be a little tester of living on my own [permanently]. Getting my own place is something I’ve thought about, I’m just not sure where I want to go yet.”

For her career, though, the only way is up. Since quitting her zero-hours-contract healthcare assistant job following The Traitors final, Mollie has earned a pretty penny advertising for scores of brands, including Primark, Wilkinson Sword, Schuh, Contiki and Waitrose & Partners, on her social channels.

“I really enjoyed my job. I love helping people, so it’s nice to still be helping people through awareness in a different way,” she says. “I’ve just got to make sure I use my platform for good.”

‘I’d love to win Dancing On Ice, but I’ll take it day by day’

Although she has a dream to one day launch her own fashion line, currently modelling isn’t a big priority for Mollie.

“A lot of the time before, I did it for disability awareness, but since I’ve found more of a voice, I enjoy talking and being able to help people in that way.”

Hungry for a future in telly, Mollie hopes to one day create disability awareness documentaries, after fronting two short films for BBC1’s Morning Live about stoma surgery and prosthetic limbs.

“I really enjoyed making those videos, and with that kind of documentary, where you chat to people, I’m learning while teaching others, which is great,” she says. She adds that taking part in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! is another future goal.

As for Dancing On Ice, perhaps this will finally be her chance to finish in first place?

“I would absolutely love to win the show, but I have to just take it all day by day,” grins Mollie. “Let’s see what happens!”

• Watch Dancing On Ice, Sunday January 12, 6.30pm ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.