Holly Valance’s Political Turn: From Soap Star to ‘Far-Right Royalty’
The former actress and pop star’s embrace of controversial figures and far-right ideologies appears to have irrevocably altered her public image.
Holly Valance, once a beloved figure on screens as the character Felicity ‘Flick’ Scully and a chart-topping pop artist, has undergone a dramatic transformation, baffling many with her increasingly vocal support for far-right politics. The 42-year-old’s alignment with figures like Nigel Farage and Donald Trump, coupled with provocative statements, has led industry experts to suggest a return to mainstream entertainment is now highly unlikely.
Valance first gained prominence in 1999 at the age of 16, captivating audiences as the feminist and socially conscious Flick Scully on the Australian soap opera Neighbours. After three years on Ramsay Street, she transitioned to a successful music career, releasing her debut album Footprints in 2002, which spawned hits like “Kiss Kiss,” “Down Boy,” and “Naughty Girl.” A follow-up album, State of Mind, arrived the following year.
Throughout the next decade, Valance continued to work as an actress, appearing in popular shows such as the CSI franchise, Entourage, and Prison Break, as well as the 2008 film Taken and a stint on Strictly Come Dancing in 2011. However, in 2013, she largely withdrew from public life, focusing on her family with billionaire property developer Nick Candy, whom she married in 2012 in a lavish £3 million ceremony featuring a performance by Katy Perry.
The shift in Valance’s public persona began approximately four years ago, when she and Candy were photographed with Reform UK founder Nigel Farage and former US President Donald Trump. Farage shared the image on X (formerly Twitter), noting the group had enjoyed a “great dinner at Mar-a-Lago!” This marked the beginning of a series of increasingly public endorsements of right-wing ideologies.
The backlash was immediate, with many vowing to boycott Valance’s music upon learning of her political leanings. Two years later, an interview on GB News further fueled the controversy. During the appearance, she referred to climate activist Greta Thunberg as a “demonic little gremlin high priestess of climatism,” dismissed the existence of a “climate crisis,” and criticized her native Australia, stating that “the woke stuff’s really gone big in Australia.”
In a particularly striking declaration, Valance asserted, “I would say that everyone starts off as a leftie and then wakes up at some point after making money, working, trying to run a business, trying to buy a home, then realises what crap ideas they all are, and then you go the right.” She later defended her views in The Times, suggesting she was simply “buck[ing] the trend” in the entertainment industry.
More recently, Valance has been seen alongside Tommy Robinson, the founder of the English Defence League, at his Unite the Kingdom march in London, sporting a “MEGA (Make England Great Again)” hat. She told The Daily Telegraph Australia she was “very proud and pleased of Tommy – this is his redemption.” Last month, she collaborated with Pauline Hanson, leader of Australia’s One Nation party, on a song titled “Kiss Kiss (XX) My Arse,” a clear reference to her 2002 hit, which satirizes “cancel culture” and “woke” ideology. She was also reprimanded for using an ableist slur on GB News, but refused to apologize.
Despite the controversy, Valance has remained steadfast in her views, showing no indication of backing down. Borne Media director Denise Palmer-Davies, detailing Valance’s transformation into a far-right spokesperson, stated that sharing her views had been “massively damaging” to her brand. “After [sharing her views for the first time] there was no going back, and I think she thought ‘to hell with it now. I may as well use my status as a figure to promote my beliefs and help what I believe in’,” Palmer-Davies explained.
Palmer-Davies emphasized the blurring lines between entertainment, politics, and personal branding, noting that audiences now view celebrities as “values-driven brands.” “By publicly aligning herself with Farage, Trump, and now collaborating with Hanson, Holly has made a very deliberate positioning choice, and that inevitably is going to narrow her commercial audience,” she added. While a return to the entertainment industry is not impossible, Palmer-Davies believes it would be met with “incredible nervousness and wary” reactions. “She’s now established niche followers who are very right-wing. But for the masses, she’s literally going to have people not wanting to touch her with a barge pole.”
Despite potential career repercussions, Valance’s substantial net worth of £15.7 million suggests she is financially secure. “I think a lot of people are now starting to look at her as a bit of a poster girl…and I think she’s happy to be that for the far right,” Palmer-Davies observed.
In 2024, The Guardian described Valance as having “rapidly risen to become radical-right royalty.” She has consistently voiced her support for Farage, even referring to him as “Uncle Nigel” by her two teenage daughters and donating £100,000 to his party. She was also reportedly considering running for Reform in the Essex constituency of Basildon and Billericay. Valance has praised Trump as “fabulous” and “extremely gentlemanly.”
Valance’s personal life has also undergone changes. After relocating from London to Los Angeles and then back to London following her marriage to Candy, the couple announced their separation in June of last year. The split was confirmed by a source who stated they were “keeping things private out of respect for their family.” Her anti-immigration views are notable, given her own background as the daughter of a British mother and Serbian father who has resided in the UK for many years.
Even members of her own family have distanced themselves from her controversial statements, with her sister, Olympia Valance, clarifying on Australian radio, “Oh God! Everyone’s going to think that that’s what I think! And I don’t … that’s not my opinion on anything.”
When questioned about “coming out as a right winger,” Valance defiantly declared, “Now I’m just like living this far-right thug life, you know what I’m saying?,” though she later clarified that the label was a “lazy attempt to slander anybody with reasonable views on incredibly dangerous levels of illegal immigration.” While she has dismissed rumors of a political run in the near future, she remains open to the possibility, stating, “If at some point over the next five years that becomes more realistic then I’d revisit that but right now I’m just supporting from the sidelines.”
Ultimately, Holly Valance’s journey from soap sweetheart to outspoken far-right supporter appears to have fundamentally altered her public profile, presenting a significant obstacle to any potential career revival.
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