Katie Piper has built her life around helping others. Best-selling author, broadcaster and charity campaigner – who survived a brutal attack in 2008 – says her passion for supporting vulnerable people stems from the kindness that carried her through her darkest days.
Speaking ahead of hosting this year’s Variety Club Showbusiness Awards, (Sunday 19th October) Ms Piper reflected on how her experiences shaped her mission to help those who are “different, disadvantaged or forgotten”.
“I experienced a wave of kindness from people that I didn’t even know,” she told the Sunday Express. “The NHS, the charities, the British public – they reached out and supported me. The more you come together, the stronger you are together. Great things can be done.”
This year marks the first time Piper has hosted the star-studded Variety Awards, which take place tonight, celebrating achievements in entertainment while raising funds for children who are disabled or disadvantaged. Among the honourees are England football captain Leah Williamson and legendary singer Petula Clark.
But for Piper, 42, it’s not the glamour that drives her – it’s the cause. Earlier this week, she spent a day at Meadow High School in Uxbridge, one of the many schools supported by the Variety charity.
“I can’t tell you – it was such a brilliant day,” she said, lighting up as she recalled the visit. “The children were so polite, confident and funny.”
The pupils proudly showed her around one of the charity’s famous Sunshine Coaches – especially adapted buses that give disabled and disadvantaged children a ticket to freedom.
“They told me how the coach gives them access to the real world – they can go swimming, visit museums, have snacks on board. It’s not just a bus; it’s freedom, independence and normality. For some of the most disadvantaged children in society, it’s everything.”
That experience, Ms Piper said, has given her “a true understanding” of what the Variety Awards are all about.
“When you see celebrities on the night, you might think, ‘It’s nothing for them to give some money,’ but for these children it means the world,” she said. “It’s a very showbusiness night, but at the heart of it is a really good cause.”
Hosting the event feels like a “huge responsibility,” she said. “I want to do the children and parents justice. Last year I was just a guest – I sat with Simon Cowell, who received a lifetime achievement award. He’s a friend and a kind patron of my Katie Piper Foundation. Simon gives a lot more than people realise.”
The Katie Piper Foundation, launched in 2009, supports survivors of burns and disfigurement, helping them access rehabilitation and rebuild confidence. It’s part of a broader commitment she’s made to standing up for those on society’s margins – including her work in women’s prisons.
“I do workshops and volunteer inside,” she explained. “There’s no point doing things unless you can show up in person, drive meaningful change and make a lasting impact. Many women in prison have been victims of domestic violence. I’ve done confidence-building sessions, poetry classes, even park runs inside the prison grounds.”
Her prison work began after inmates contacted her. “They’d named a wing after me,” she recalled. “I connected with these women whose lives had been affected by men – they had interesting stories about adversity, but many had also been victims before they were labelled perpetrators.”
That connection inspired her to film a documentary for U&W, Locked Up in Louisiana, exploring how female prisoners in the US are often jailed for acts of self-defence. “It made me realise how trauma repeats itself,” she said. “The victims can become perpetrators – it’s a cycle we need to break.”
Despite her own hardships, Piper says she doesn’t see herself as a victim. “What happened was 17 years ago,” she said. “I have a very busy life and children to think about. I don’t describe myself that way – I meet so many people now with different stories.”
Motherhood, she said, deepened her empathy. “I’m so lucky my kids are healthy – they’re seven and eleven now. Being a mum connects you to other children and families. You see how fragile life can be, and how easily things could be different.”
Her drive to help others, she reflected, may be part nature and part nurture. “It’s hard to say whether it would’ve happened anyway, or whether it came from what I went through. But I was brought up in a small village – my mum was a teacher, and the community looked after each other. Kindness was just normal.”
That same spirit, she said, still guides her life today. “After what happened to me, I learned that charity isn’t just about money. It’s about time, energy, compassion – and using your own story to help others.”
As she prepares to take the stage at the Variety Awards, Ms Piper hopes the glitz of the evening will translate into something much more powerful.
“These buses, these wheelchairs, these chances – they’re not luxuries,” she said. “They’re lifelines. And if we can give even one child the freedom to be part of the world, then that’s worth everything.”
The Variety Club Showbusiness Awards take place tonight in London, raising funds for disabled and disadvantaged children across the UK.
