Gail Porter head out on a shopping spree in Soho with a bearded mystery man

Gail Porter looked low-key on Wednesday as she headed out on a shopping spree in Soho, London with a bearded mystery man.

The Scottish presenter, 51, who was diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, appeared to be in great spirits during the outing. 

The former model, who lost her hair 15 years ago, cut a casual figure in a black padded jacket and top.

She teamed the look with a pair of blue jeans and colourful trainers as they strolled down the street.

Meanwhile, her pal donned a bright red shirt and blue jeans, teamed with a cowboy belt and a black coat. 

Outing: Gail Porter looked low-key on Wednesday as she head out on a shopping spree in Soho, London with a bearded mystery man

She was having lots of fun trying on cute and cuddly animal hats at a fancy dress shop. 

Gail took to Instagram to show off the results. She was wearing psychedelic spectacles with the faux fur animal hat. 

It comes after Gail urged people to ‘be kind’ after revealing she was told she could ‘possibly look pretty again’ if she wore a wig.

She took to Twitter to tell her fans to think about their words before expressing them and admitted at the time that her TV work had dried up due to her refusing to wear a wig on air.

She wrote on Twitter: ‘Sleep tight all. I had someone who told me if I wore a wig I could possibly look pretty again. 

‘Think what you all say to each other. We all have feelings. Be kind. It’s not hard. X’ 

Gail was first diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, with the star seeing her TV work dry up at the time after she refused to wear wigs.

In February, she shared a heartfelt message on Instagram insisting ‘nothing can break me’ after losing her eyebrows and eyelashes to alopecia again.

Low-key: The Scottish presenter, 51, who was diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, cut a casual figure in a black padded jacket and top

Low-key: The Scottish presenter, 51, who was diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, cut a casual figure in a black padded jacket and top

Fun: She was having lots of fun trying on cute and cuddly animal hats at a fancy dress shop

Fun: She was having lots of fun trying on cute and cuddly animal hats at a fancy dress shop

Dressing up: Gail took to Instagram to show off the results. She was wearing psychedelic spectacles with the faux fur animal hat

Dressing up: Gail took to Instagram to show off the results. She was wearing psychedelic spectacles with the faux fur animal hat

The presenter said she was ‘lucky’ despite her troubles, offering words of encouragement to people going through the same thing.

She wrote: ‘Well… alopecia had a good old go at me again. Eyebrows and eyelashes gone again… but, absolutely nothing can break me and I know I’m a very lucky human. 

‘More than a million more important things in this world, but anyone that does get scared about losing your hair… you’ve got this. Believe me.’

Describing herself as looking like the moon on Twitter, she posted a picture of Earth’s natural satellite and wrote: ‘Damn. Eyelashes and eyebrows have all decided to leave me. Hey ho.’

'Never let anyone put you down': Gail recently urged people to be kind after revealing she was told she could 'possibly look pretty again' if she wore a wig (pictured in May)

‘Never let anyone put you down’: Gail recently urged people to be kind after revealing she was told she could ‘possibly look pretty again’ if she wore a wig (pictured in May)

Gail lost out on TV work after being diagnosed due to refusing to wear wigs and she later found herself homeless.

She was at the height of her career in the 90s, hosting shows including Top Of The Pops, and The Big Breakfast.

Gail has credited her daughter Honey, 19, who she shares with ex-husband Dan Hipgrave, for ‘saving her life’. Gail and Dan married in 2001 but split in 2005.

She previously explained on the Sacrifice and Success podcast: ‘My personality took a bit of a knock.

'Be kind': The Scottish presenter, 51, who was diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, took to Twitter to tell her fans to think about their words before expressing them (pictured in 1999)

‘Be kind’: The Scottish presenter, 51, who was diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, took to Twitter to tell her fans to think about their words before expressing them (pictured in 1999)

‘Jobs just stopped, because you don’t look the same. ‘Would you wear a wig, would you mind wearing a wig?’ No I don’t want to wear a wig. This is how it is.

She added: ‘I was going through a divorce, no money coming in. So eventually I had nowhere to stay. It just went from bad to worse. Things like, what do you do? Do I drink? I’ve got no clue whatsoever, I don’t take drugs so…’

Gail continued: ‘I had loads of great friends but it was getting embarrassing, because I’m in my forties. My daughter’s staying at her dads.

Model: Gail was first diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, with the star seeing her TV work dry up at the time after she refused to wear wigs (pictured in 1999)

Model: Gail was first diagnosed with alopecia in 2005, with the star seeing her TV work dry up at the time after she refused to wear wigs (pictured in 1999)

‘I’ve got no money, I’ve got no work, I’m sleeping on people’s couches. It was like the Young Ones. I didn’t think I was going to be like this at my age.

‘This is why you don’t take everything for granted. You must always remember how lucky you are and be extremely kind. ‘

Gail recalled that at one point, she also did not have enough credit on her phone to be able to get in contact with anyone.

‘So there were a few times I didn’t have enough money on my phone to call anybody,’ she added.

Old flame: The presenter was at the height of her career when she was diagnosed with alopecia, hosting shows including Top Of The Pops, Children In Need and The Big Breakfast (pictured with ex-husband Dan Hipgrave in 2001)

Old flame: The presenter was at the height of her career when she was diagnosed with alopecia, hosting shows including Top Of The Pops, Children In Need and The Big Breakfast (pictured with ex-husband Dan Hipgrave in 2001) 

‘If I found a pound I was thinking, what do I do with a pound? I’ll see if I can find another one and get a mini bottle of wine from the local off license or those little ones. Anything for comfort. I was freezing as well, because I was outside.’

The TV star was sectioned under the Mental Health Act in 2011 and admitted that she was motivated by her daughter to ‘save her own life’, as she later sought treatment.

She said: ‘I went to rehab for my depression, self-harming, if I didn’t have Honey I wouldn’t be here. One hundred percent. I would not be here. But I thought, I could not do that to my daughter at all.’

For help call Samaritans for free on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org.

WHAT IS ALOPECIA?

Alopecia, which causes baldness, is thought to be an autoimmune disorder. The immune system – the body’s defense system – turns on itself.

What are the symptoms?

‘Typically, one or more small bald patches, about the size of a 50p piece, appear on the scalp. The hair can start to regrow at one site, while another bald patch develops. Hair may also begin to thin all over the head,’ says Marilyn Sherlock, chairman of the Institute of Trichologists. 

What causes it?

‘For some reason, the body’s immune system begins to attack its own hair follicles. Special white blood cells in the body, known as T-lymphocytes, cause the hair to stop growing,’ she adds.

Can worry make it worse?

Stress has been shown to prolong the problem. 

Is it an inherited condition?

There is strong evidence to suggest that alopecia, like other auto-immune diseases, runs in families. About 25 per cent of patients have a family history of the disorder. 

Who gets it?

Alopecia areata usually affects teenagers and young adults, but it can affect people of any age. It is just as common among men as women. 

Is there a cure?

There is no known cure, although there are various treatments which may be effective for some people.

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