![\"*Iretiola\"](\"http:\/\/img.ghanamma.com\/uploads\/2013\/07\/67faIretiola-new.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n*Iretiola<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Aside these, I present the weekly show \u2018NIMASA This Week\u2019 on Channels TV and also a Hausa talk show \u2018Toron Giwa\u2019 that airs on the DSTV Hausa Channel, not to mention my engagements as an MC. So , Tinsel as consuming as it can be is not the only thing I do.<\/p>\n
Would you run for public office if given the opportunity?<\/p>\n
Am I likely to run for public office? I\u2019m not sure. It\u2019s not something I am consciously thinking about talk less of working towards. However, I am deeply concerned and have very strong views about the state of my nation. I often voice these views in my weekly column here in Saturday Vanguard as well as in a few other socio-political gatherings where I have been invited to speak. Should the opportunity present itself, though, I would like to think I have the strength and courage to step up to the plate.<\/p>\n
I have no intention of starting up an NGO, although I do have my own personal CSR that I engage in. I work with young ladies wherever I find them. As it turns out, the industry I thrive in is thronging with them. When I say \u2018work with them\u2019 I mean like a big sister: Provide a listening ear, guidance and sound advice and sometimes when necessary,\u00a0 a stern talking-to.<\/p>\n
For some, it is financial assistance, for others it might be opening a door that had hitherto remained shut. Young girls are drawn to me and find it easy to talk to me about sundry things, some of them excruciatingly personal. I, on the other hand, had made up my mind long ago to do whatever I can to make someone else\u2019s journey a whole lot easier.<\/p>\n
The Lord has found diverse ways to put that desire to use. Will this ever develop into a full- fledged NGO or something like that? I doubt it very much. Besides, the biblical injunction is that your right hand should not know what your left hand is doing. In terms of \u2018giving\u2019, my default mode is to be unobtrusive; a paradox, given my chosen career \u2013 though I have toyed with the idea of holding a public lecture for young ladies where we can sit and talk to each other about self-esteem, making good choices and the need to understand who we are from an early age.<\/p>\n
Something like an annual event to coincide with my birthday perhaps. We could call it the \u2018Iretiola Doyle Annual Lecture For Young Ladies\u2019.\u00a0 The idea popped into my head around my birthday this year. I thought maybe I\u2019d visit a couple of secondary schools and start from there. However, my commitment to the stage play(which, incidentally, was performed on my birthday) ensured that this year at least, it remained just that \u2013 an idea. Let\u2019s see what happens next year.<\/p>\n
Many of your colleagues are brand ambassadors, what about you?<\/p>\n
Endorsements are not something you pursue overtly. There\u2019s a whole marketing strategy behind picking a brand ambassador that goes beyond your competence in your area of endeavour, even though it all begins from there. It has to do with your level of visibility, how the public perceives you, etc. I\u2019ve had a few offers, that they did not come to fruition simply means along the line we found we were not a perfect fit. It\u2019s the law of averages\u2026 At some point will come a brand and it will be a match made in heaven.<\/p>\n
These days, a lot of Nollywood stars are dying, some due to carelessness. What are you doing to curb stress\u00a0 and avoid hypertension?<\/p>\n
May the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace. The only thing you can do is to respect and take good care of the body you\u2019ve been given. The older I get, the more cautious I am of what goes into my mouth. One tries to do all things in moderation.\u00a0 I try and get a lot of rest when I am not working. I try not to expose myself physically, mentally and even emotionally to undue danger. And I get regular medical check-ups.<\/p>\n
I also actually \u2018listen to my body\u2019. If there is some inexplicable pain or swelling etc., I try and get it checked out as soon as possible. When I do take risks, they are calculated. Those are the things you can control. For the things that I can\u2019t, I simply place my trust in my Lord Jesus Christ from whom comes my help and salvation.<\/p>\n
I notice you now play romantic roles in \u2018Tinsel\u2019. Hope there are no complaints from your husband?<\/p>\n
Nope, there are no complaints whatsoever.<\/p>\n
How do you combine marriage, career and motherhood?<\/p>\n
Pretty easy. I\u2019ve always worked, so my family is used to me having a busy schedule. I have faithful staff and a hands-on partner who makes things very easy to manage. Besides, my kids are all grown now and can look after themselves for the most part. Then of course grace \u2013 which is the key factor.<\/p>\n
I read an interview sometime that portrayed you are impatient and quick to anger. How true is that and what are you doing about it?<\/p>\n
Malice is a poisonous emotion. Now I recognise it for what it is and on the very rare occasions it does rear its ugly head. I work assiduously to rid myself of it before it takes root and begins to fester.<\/p>\n
I am still\u00a0 an impatient person, but I think I\u2019ve learnt a bit more tolerance. You can\u2019t be a team player if you\u2019re not tolerant. And you really can\u2019t excel in this job or in life in general if you\u2019re not a team player. Plus, it is only a foolish person that will grow to be middle aged without learning that while you may disagree with another\u2019s views, that\u2019s no reason to disrespect them. So you learn to accommodate. And where accommodation is impossible, you learn to get your message across without malice. Where that might be difficult, you learn to walk away with grace.<\/p>\n
Who are your friends in the movie industry and what endears them to you?<\/p>\n
I have many friends and associates, but the two people I am most intimate with in the industry would have to be Najite Dede and Kate Henshaw. What endears them to me, besides the very high level of professionalism they bring to bear on their craft, is that they understand the meaning of friendship and loyalty.<\/p>\n
Why did you stop your TV Fashion Show?<\/p>\n
My fashion show \u2018Oge with Iretiola\u2019 aired for 10 years. I took it off air because we had done the same thing almost the same way for a decade and it was time to revamp. As it turns out, this coincided with the time my character on \u2018Tinsel\u2019 grew big. I was working 12-hour days, some days I had 20 scenes; there wasn\u2019t the time or energy to do anything else. However, in the last several months, we\u2019ve been working on bringing it back. This time, we\u2019ll launch it as a web series for two reasons \u2013 first being that this will give us a global audience and secondly, it is to circumvent the astronomical cost of airtime. It will eventually find its way on to some cable stations as well as TV stations where the cost of airtime still makes economic sense.<\/p>\n
![\"*Iretiola](\"http:\/\/img.ghanamma.com\/uploads\/2013\/07\/2899Iretiola.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n*Iretiola<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Is it true you had a child at 17 outside marriage? Where is the child now and what is he doing?<\/p>\n
I got pregnant at 19 and had my baby\u00a0 when I was 20. She\u2019s doing great! She lives with me, she\u00a0 is a graduate of Economics from OAU and is now working.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s your biggest regret about life?<\/p>\n
Regrets? No. I consider \u2018regret\u2019 a waste of time and emotion. Are there things I wish I had done differently? Perhaps. But what\u2019s done is done. I learn from my mistakes, move on and try not to repeat them. I certainly do not carry them around like baggage.<\/p>\n
What is the secret behind your successful marriage, especially at a time many Nollywood marriages are crashing?<\/p>\n
Being patient, tolerant, learning the rules of engagement as regards marriage, not having a knee-jerk reaction to issues and circumstances and learning how to compromise.<\/p>\n
After many years, one would have thought you would be bigger in the industry. Is marriage weighing down your career?<\/p>\n
It can be challenging, even though there are also moments of sheer bliss. The key is learning how to prioritise your time and realising you can\u2019t pull it off alone.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s now a collabo beween\u00a0 Nollywood and Hollywood. What\u2019s your take on that?<\/p>\n
I think the \u2018collabo\u2019 between us and the rest of the world is a good thing. It will affect quality control and to some extent, ensure that what we churn out meets global standards. However, I hope that in our bid to be \u2018accepted\u2019 by the rest of the world, we don\u2019t lose what sets us apart \u2013 our \u2018Africanness\u2019, our culture and traditions which also inform our value system.<\/p>\n
Movies\u00a0 are now getting premiered in cinemas. What\u2019s your opinion on the development?<\/p>\n
Now that\u2019s exciting. It brings our movies closer to the public in a comfortable setting. It will also affect quality control. I don\u2019t see any cinema serious about staying in business showing sub-standard movies. Plus, it\u2019s another distribution channel that completely side-steps the \u2018almighty marketer\u2019. It\u2019s an avenue for the producer to reap further financial gain from their labour. I wish there were many more cinemas across the nation.<\/p>\n
When do you plan to quit acting and what next after that?<\/p>\n
Quit acting? Not in this lifetime. That\u2019s the beauty of this business. I\u2019m going to be acting until I am old and frail. And even after that, for as long as I have my faculties in good working condition, I will still be involved in communication in some way: writing, producing, radio show hosting etc.<\/p>\n
What next?<\/p>\n
The next is all happening right now. I\u2019m a budding farmer. I\u2019ve always wanted to own something that was 100% mine, which could not be affected by someone else\u2019s whims and caprices. I also strongly believe that in the years to come food and water will become a major deal. I started out with a tiny snail farm in my backyard. It was an experiment, to see if I could do it and if it was something I could sustain.<\/p>\n
Today, I\u2019ve acquired a nice parcel of farmland in a farming community somewhere around Ewekoro.\u00a0 I\u2019m currently putting up the infrastructure. There, I intend to rear snails, fish, do\u00a0 some animal husbandry and whatever else catches my fancy. I\u2019m pretty excited about it. Not only is it being set up as a commercial venture, it\u2019s my little getaway.<\/p>\n
You and your husband were handling \u2018Today on STV\u2019. Why did you\u00a0 quit?<\/p>\n
When my husband was commissioned to produce \u2018Today on STV\u2019 I wanted that job badly and he told me pointblank to forget it. He didn\u2019t want to be accused of nepotism. Less than a week into the show, the presenter went on leave, and suddenly out of the blue, I was asked to stand in for her. I stood in for two weeks after which Mr Ben Bruce asked that I remain a permanent fixture. That is how I became lead anchor on the show for two years. It was a fantastic run, and I enjoyed the job and myself tremendously. Along the line, there was a misunderstanding between my husband and the owners, details of which I\u2019d rather not go into here. Suffice it to say that when my husband left, I had to leave as well.<\/p>\n
What would you change about yourself if given the chance?<\/p>\n
Not a thing. I\u2019m perfectly and wonderfully made by God.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Best described as a bundle of talents, Iretiola Doyle is an actress, presenter and producer with a lot to look forward to. In this no-holds-barred interview withCHIOMA GABRIEL, she talks about her\u00a0 marriage, career and of course, the premiere of her first movie which holds today…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-150871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n