Get to know the newest voice in women’s fiction – CATE WOODS answers our Bookends quick-fire Q&A

Cate Woods made the most of her degree in Anglo-Saxon Literature by embarking on a career making tea on programmes including The Big Breakfast, Who Wants to be a Millionaire and French & Saunders. After narrowly missing out on the chance to become a Channel 5 weather girl she moved into journalism, where she interviewed every famous John, from Prescott to Bon Jovi, ghostwrote a weekly column for a footballer’s wife and enjoyed a brief stint as one half of Closer magazine’s gossip-columnist duo, ‘Mr & Mrs Showbiz’. Cate left the magazine world in 2009 to pursue a full-time career ghostwriting celebrity autobiographies and novels. She lives in London with her husband (not Mr Showbiz) and two small children.

Just Haven’t Met You Yet is a riotous comedy with a magnificent twist, and is her first novel under her own name. We thought that since she’s the new kid on the bloc, we’d give you all a chance to get to know Cate a little better, so we sat her down and grilled her, and here’s what we found out…

If I had to go back in time and choose another career…

I’d be a marine biologist so that my office would be a dive boat in the Maldives.

My dream holiday destination…

Tokyo, for the otherworldly craziness of the place. And the food.

The item I have more of than anything else…

Jeans. I am on a lifelong quest to find the perfect pair. 

The last time I went to the cinema…

I saw ‘Star Wars’ and loved it – although Carrie Fisher’s face was a bit distracting.

The thing I could never give up…

Coffee.

My choice of superpower…

I would love to be able to speak any language in the world.

The book (by another author) that I wish I had written…

‘How to be a Woman’ by Caitlin Moran.

If I could pick any actor/actress to play my latest lead character…

Amy Schumer.

The best play I’ve seen…

Watching ‘Jerusalem’ with Mark Rylance was like being slapped round the face, in the best possible way.

The one piece of advice I would give my teenage self…

Honestly, everyone else is just as worried as you are.

If I had to choose between appearing on Strictly Come Dancing or X Factor…

Strictly. I would die happy if I could get a Ten from Len.

When I was 5 years old I wanted to be…

Princess Leia (pre-facelift).

The comedian who makes me laugh the most…

If I need cheering up I Google videos of Kirsten Wiig on Saturday Night Live. 

My favourite city in the world…

New York.

If I could play the starring role in any film…

The Hunger Games.

If I want to relax…

I’d need to go back in time and decide not have children.

If I had to re-build my house with either gingerbread or chocolate…

Chocolate, to avoid the unfortunate Hansel-and-Gretel-witch vibe of gingerbread.

My favourite cookbook…

Bit controversial this one, but Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘It’s All Good’ actually has some brilliant recipes. It’s really not just ‘250 ways with kale’.

Cate’s debut novel is out in February 11, and you can pre-order your copy of Just Haven’t Met You Yet here