Mel C: I find motherhood difficult

Mel C is finding life as a single mother "difficult".

The 39-year-old singer-songwriter has been raising four-year-old daughter Scarlet alone since she split from Thomas Starr last year, and says she is concerned about the effects her work have had on her role as a parent.

She told Closer magazine: "I find [motherhood] difficult. I don’t think you ever get right and it’s just like a work in progress – especially because of the way my work is."

Mel – real name Melanie Chisholm – is starring in the stage version of rock musical ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ and said juggling her dedication to her lead role of Mary Magdalene with Scarlet’s needs takes its toll.

She added: "I just took Scarlet to Australia for the Jesus Christ Superstar tour because I didn’t want to be without her. But the tour and juggling it all with Scarlet really took it out of me and I’ve been feeling run down."

The star believes a combination of overworking and not eating well led to her being diagnosed with depression in 2000 and has cultivated a different approach to eating since becoming a mum.

She added: "When I fell pregnant, I made it my priority to eat healthily because I wanted to give her the nutrition that she needed. It was liberating to relax about my body."