Last updated 12:39, Friday, 21 March 2008

We're Mothers - it's what we do!

As an explanation for the abrupt end of the Spice Girls’ tour, she told the media it was important to be with the kids.

Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like screaming every time I hear a famous mother trot out that line. I’m not sure whether they think exhausted civilian mothers will empathise with them or they are just incredibly smug to believe saying this statement somehow lifts them to a higher moral level.

Posh is not the only one who can bore for England about putting her “career’’ on hold for the good of her family. I guarantee I could find this line in at least one interview given by famous mothers over the past 10 years.

It is obviously in the Hollywood PR handbook for new celebrity mums. Rule 1) Make sure client emphasises how making multi-million pound films will never, ever affect her ability to read stories to her kids, wipe up poo or lock herself in toilet to escape toddler having a tantrum.

Rule 2) No matter how preposterous the scenario, ensure client says given the choice between flying off to Vienna to film love story with Johnny Depp (lots of nudity involved), she would choose to stay at home and watch re-runs of Barney with kids covered in Play-Doh.

In my conversations with ordinary working mothers, I can’t remember one of them ever uttering those words “I need to put the family first.’’ This is because it just goes without saying we all try to ensure the kids are ok, in whatever way works for us.

We may panic over child-care in the holidays, pick-ups after school, fitting in jobs, housework and trying to ensure our children don’t grow up with a deprived childhood they may make a best-selling book out of in 20 years, but looking after the family is just what we do.

Normal mothers don’t want to be martyrs caring for their kids. They just want to get through a working day, with the kids asleep in bed, the washing pile only a foot-high sitting with a drink in their hands watching something soothing and trashy on TV.

Celebrity mothers may well boast about putting their family first but they have assistants, stylists, nannies, cleaners, house-keepers, accountants and business managers to help them do this.

I recently interviewed a 30-year-old woman who has four kids, two of whom are babies, who is training, at college and in a job, for a career which will help her support them and give her personal satisfaction. “How do you manage it all?’’ I said. “Well,’’ she said, “you just get on with it don’t you.’’ If only famous mothers were as modest.