Tan France has revealed his guilt at bleaching his skin when he was younger, adding that his East Asian ‘elders’ encouraged him to ‘be as white as possible’.
The Queer Eye star, 38, who was born and raised in South Yorkshire, admitted he felt ’embarrassed’ about the practice up until now and ensured to ‘hide the ways’ he was becoming ‘as light-skinned as possible’.
He told Radio Times: ‘Elders encourage you to try and find a way to be as white as possible by staying out of the sun and – this is going to sound ridiculous – avoiding dark foods that might encourage the skin to darken.
Candid: Tan France has revealed his guilt at bleaching his skin when he was younger, adding that his East Asian ‘elders’ encouraged him to ‘be as white as possible’
‘But I didn’t tell anyone about bleaching because I felt embarrassed.
‘You learn pretty early on to hide the ways in which you are trying to become as light-skinned as possible.’
The stylist previously confessed in his book Naturally Tan: A Memoir, that he wanted to be white aged just five.
By age 10, he was stealing bleaching cream from his cousin and using it at night before going to sleep, which he described as his ‘dirty little secret’.
Open: The Queer Eye star, 38, who was born and raised in South Yorkshire, admitted he felt ’embarrassed’ about the practice up until now and ensured to ‘hide the ways’ he was becoming ‘as light-skinned as possible’
Last year, Tan welcomed his first son, Ismail, with husband Rob with the help of a ‘wonderful’ surrogate.
He took to Instagram in August to share the happy news with his 3.8 million followers and revealed they welcomed their newborn last month but he had to spend three weeks in NICU after being born premaurely.
The new parents looked glowing in the precious snaps, as Tan cradled his newborn baby son.
What?! The stylist previously confessed in his book Naturally Tan: A Memoir, that he wanted to be white aged just five
The fashion designer gushed: ‘Give our son a warm welcome. Ismail France, born July 10th. He came 7 weeks early, so he’s been in the NICU for the past 3 weeks. But, today, we finally got to bring him home.
‘We love him so, so much. Like, fully obsessed. Our Surrogate is doing so great, post labor, and we couldn’t be more grateful for the greatest gift in our lives.’.
A slew of names have congratulated the new parents, with Great British Bake Off finalist Steven Carter-Bailey leaving a heartfelt message: ‘Ah wonderful news. Welcome baby France such a lucky baby with those papas xxx’.
Doting dad: Last year, Tan welcomed his first son, Ismail, with husband Rob with the help of a ‘wonderful’ surrogate
Tan first announced he was expecting his first child back in April – thanks to ‘the greatest gift/help of the most wonderful surrogate.’
He made the joyous announcement via Instagram, which featured a playful snap of the television personality holding a sonogram over his chiseled stomach.
‘So happy to finally share that WE’RE HAVING A BABY!! No, I’m not pregnant, despite this VERY realistic pic,’ captioned Tan, noting that the baby would be arriving sometime ‘this Summer.’
Parenthood: Tan and Rob welcomed a child into the world thanks to ‘the greatest gift/help of the most wonderful surrogate’ (the pair pictured above)
‘Rob and I are lucky enough to be on our way to being parents, this Summer. Something we’ve wanted for SOooo many years.
‘Our hearts are so full right now. I cannot wait to hold this baby, and to show him so much love,’ concluded Tan, who boasts nearly 4million followers on the platform.
Along with his shirtless sonogram snap, Tan included a sweet image of himself and his husband of nearly 14 years posing before snow covered mountains.
Rob, a professional illustrator, also used his Instagram to unveil the couple’s pregnancy to the world.
‘We have a beautiful little angel on the way and I didn’t think it was humanly possible to feel like this,’ captioned the artist, who doubles as a paediatric nurse.
The couple, who are currently residing in Salt Lake City, Utah, wed back in 2007.
Good read: Tan’s interview can be found in Radio Times 23-29 April 2022 issue (Miriam Margolyes is pictured)
