Daniella Westbrook: I bought my first flat at 17 but at 52 have no savings or pension

In our How I Manage My Money series, we aim to find out how people are spending, saving and investing money to meet their costs and achieve their goals. This week, in our celebrity edition, we speak to former EastEnders actress Daniella Westbrook, 52, who reflects on earning £500 an episode as a teenage soap star, buying her first three-bedroom penthouse at 17 and why she believes her children’s education was worth every penny. What was money like in your household when you were growing up? My mum and dad both worked really, really hard. They both had their own business doing carpet fitting. Mum also had clothes shops and worked the markets at weekends. She worked seven days a week. Shorts Money was good in our house, but it came from hard work. From a young age, my brother and I always worked Saturday jobs. We knew how to do house chores, and if we wanted pocket money, we had to earn it and save up. What was your first job? I used to wash hair in a hairdressers every Saturday. After that, I worked in a boutique at Walthamstow Market selling accessories, then I worked in a delicatessen with one of my best friends. We got £25 a week and had a great time. I used to save my money and buy clothes. I loved clothes. Even when I got EastEnders, I was always buying nice clothes. You were only 15 when you joined EastEnders. What was that first pay cheque like? It was really good. We used to be at work five or six days a week, so we didn’t actually get much chance to spend the money. I just used to save, save, save. I bought my first flat when I was 17. It was a three-bedroom penthouse in Woodford Bridge that had been repossessed. I bought it, did it all up and then sold it to one of my brother’s best friends. I’ve always loved property. How much were you earning on EastEnders? You got paid per episode. In the beginning I think it was about £500 an episode. Later on, it just went up as time went on. I was there for six years originally, and I’ve been back four times since. When I was there full-time, I was filming between two and six episodes a week, so it was good money. Was that the most lucrative period of your career? Definitely. Being there solidly, filming nearly every day, that was the best earning period. I loved it. How different is your relationship with money today? Back then, I was terrible with money. Today, I’m so much better. Although, to be fair, my sister-in-law does all my bills for me. She sorts all my direct debits because I’m useless with things like that. I was married to a multimillionaire for nearly 20 years, so he took care of absolutely everything. Anything I wanted, I had. If I saw something in a shop, I’d just stop and buy it. It was great, but it was the downside as well because I never really had to think about money. What’s the best investment you’ve ever made? Definitely my first flat. My parents moved house 11 times in nine years because they were always buying properties, doing them up and selling them on alongside their full-time jobs. That’s where I got my love of property from. To me, property and period pieces are the best investments you can make. While other people were buying nice cars, I was buying property. What’s the best thing you’ve ever spent money on? My children’s education. They both went to King’s School in Rochester, and it was worth every penny. I think it was about £6,000 or £7,000 each per term. They speak languages, they’re very articulate and they’re very studious. Personally, that’s the best money I’ve ever spent. I also paid for my own education at the Sylvia Young Theatre School because I was already working. What’s your biggest financial regret? Losing my properties. I lost everything. If I’m honest, I’ve probably spent at least half a million pounds on drugs over the years. The first time I got myself back on my feet financially was when I met my husband. He ran a huge business and he just took care of everything financially. But when we divorced up during Covid after nearly 20 years together, I ended up homeless for about four years. You’ve spoken openly about rehab. Was that money well spent? Definitely. I’ve been to rehab six times. For me, education and rehab have both been worth every penny. Rehab is a wealth of knowledge. What do you spend money on now? Vinted. Last New Year’s Eve I made a decision that unless I needed clothes for work, I was only going to buy things from Primark, second-hand shops or Vinted. That’s what I’ve done. If there’s one thing I will happily spend money on, it’s my health and skincare. My mum works for L’Oréal, so I’m lucky because she gets really good discounts on my Estée Lauder skincare. I’d probably spend about £200 to £250 a month on beauty treatments because I have facials and things like that. Has there ever been a time when money felt like more of a burden than a benefit? When I was in my late teens and early twenties I was earning really good money. I was doing EastEnders and earning £10,000, £20,000 or £25,000 for personal appearances and photoshoots. It actually alienated me a bit from my friends because they were all still at college. I had a BMW M-Tech convertible while they were students. They’re still my friends today, but back then I felt different. I didn’t want to come across as flashy or make anyone uncomfortable. How do you manage your money today? When I was younger my mum helped me. I had a tax account, a savings account and a spending account, so my wages would get split between them. Nowadays my income mainly comes from my OnlyFans which does really well. I’ve also just opened a business and signed with a new talent agency. I’m renting now and it’s just me and my cat, so I don’t need a lot. Do you have a pension or retirement plan? No savings and no pension. I’ve just opened a business, and I believe if you work hard, you’ll get there. That’s always been my attitude. If you could give your younger self one piece of financial advice, what would it be? Save money. And listen to people who are older than you.