Holly willougby smiling © Jonathan Brady - PA Images

Holly Willoughby's sister shares rare childhood photo (and cute nickname!) as a birthday tribute

Director of Lifestyle & Commerce
February 10, 2024

Holly Willoughby has been getting lots of sweet birthday messages from her friends and family on her 43rd birthday, and her big sister Kelly has paid tribute in the sweetest way. 

On Saturday, the former This Morning star's older sis took to Instagram to share a lovely childhood snap with her sister. She wrote: "Happy, happy birthday my darling Holly Dolly. Love you more than a Tommy’s Margarita… can’t say it any clearer than that! Have the best day @hollywilloughby." With the lovely message she shared a snap which sees the two sisters dressed in matching striped dresses as young children. Can we also talk about the cute nickname of Holly Dolly. 

There's no denying that Holly has a close relationship with her sibling. In a previous interview with The Guardian, the mum-of-three opened up about their bond, saying: "We're more like friends than sisters. We even bought a place together in Putney. You would expect some fireworks, but because we have the same friends and have different roles within that group, none of that ever came into it." She added: "I'm more likely to be the one to say 'everyone back to mine' and cook for everyone, whereas she's much better at tidying up."

Speaking about their different personalities, Kelly explained: "I'm organised and regimented; Holly is messy. Like chalk and cheese we excelled at different things at school." She continued: "Even to look at we’re polar opposites. She's blonde and I'm dark. People say, 'Come on, you must have fought a bit, growing up?' But we didn't."

The pair live close to one another, and Kelly said: "We see each other practically every day anyway as we live very near each other and are always in and out of each other's houses with our children – so it's not like we have to consciously find time in the diary to talk."

Spice Girls star Emma Bunton was one of the first to send a birthday wish, writing on Instagram stories: "Happy birthday my beautiful friend." 

All Saints singer Nicole Appleton added a gorgeous photo of the pair of them writing "Happy birthday my precious girl! @hollywilloughby I love you to bits! Have a wonderful day!" 

This Morning's Alison Hammonds also posted a photo on her Instagram Stories wishing Holly a happy birthday. 

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