Exclusive: ‘There have been lots of tears, sadness and judgement' Nadiya Hussain on her big career change

More than a decade after her incredible win on The Great British Bake Off - which brought most of the nation and indeed, Mary Berry to tears - Nadiya Hussain’s life has gone in an unexpected direction.

Now 41, the mother of three teenagers decided to turn her back on the TV career on which she made her name, and has found herself in a very different kind of pressurised environment - the school classroom.

After the BBC didn’t recommission her TV series in the middle of 2025, she decided to focus on a completely different area of her life, after figuring that creating a bakery or something similar was not for her at present.

Speaking in the latest issue of woman&home magazine, Nadiya said, "I’m currently working as a teaching assistant at a lovely little primary school. The plan is to hopefully gain some training and maybe in the future become a teacher.

"I had to do an application form, an interview, go in and sit in with the kids and see how they reacted to me. I did get people ringing me, saying, 'Sorry, is this actually the Nadiya Hussain?' and I'm like, 'Yes, it is and I am looking for a job and I would like an opportunity' I’m really enjoying being in an environment where I'm not the centre of it."

And although it hasn’t necessarily been an easy path, with the support of her husband Abdal - with who she brainstormed what exactly she would do with her career when faced with a fork in the road - she has found her way through.

"There have been lots of tears, sadness and judgement. People [close to me] have asked, ‘Why would you go from being here, right at the top to being at the bottom?’ but I don't see it that way," she said, admitting that she has felt ‘her lowest’ at what people would think of being at the top of her game.

Now instead, she is having ‘some of her highest moments’, admitting that ‘nothing beats’ the high of helping children for her.

It makes sense for Nadiya to follow the path exactly the way she wants to. After becoming the first female Muslim contestant to win Bake Off, she promised herself she would ‘never put boundaries on herself again’, adding she was never going to say ‘I can’t do it’ as she accepted her prize.

And she’s proved exactly that in her decade on screen. Presenting everything from documentaries on anxiety to her aforementioned cooking shows, she’s also released more than a dozen cookery and children’s books – including her brand new title, Nadiya's Quick Comforts.

Shop Nadiya's cover shoot looks

And while, like she said, there have been difficult times as she decided to step away from it, she has found solace in looking into her own head to find ways to heal - especially now she is in her fifth decade.

"I realised I needed to put more effort into my mental, physical and emotional health. That involves cold showers, exercising, doing a bit of yoga, stretching, weights, and being conscious about what I’m eating, but also being present every day – and it has helped me so much."

And she hopes that as her children get older, they will be able to learn from her experiences - and she already admits her daughter Maryam is vastly different to how she was growing up.

"My eldest is taking a gap year and working with birds, my second is doing computer science, maths and further maths A levels, and my daughter is doing her GCSEs. She’s feisty, knows her own mind and voice, and really stands up for herself.

"She’s very different from what I was like in high school – I was very compliant, very quiet – but she’s just like me now. She speaks her mind. I’m still much more compliant than she is, but I’m always like, 'You’ve got to use your voice and be strong.' I give her the advice I wish somebody had given me."