I love going for walks naked – posties wave and people are friendly… I don’t care about people sunbathing nude either
SHE shocked Good Morning Britain viewers when she appeared starkers at 7:50am to debate whether sunbathing naked should be made illegal.
But criticism won’t stop Helen Berriman going full nude in public as she insists “it’s not weird”.
While it’s not against the law to be naked in public in England and Wales, it does become an offence if it can be proved the person stripped off with the intention to upset and shock.
Proud naturist Helen, 47, believes it should stay legal as she loves the “invigorating” feeling of hiking in the nude.
“To be naked in nature is such a liberating and comforting feeling,” the mum-of-one tells Fabulous. “Feeling the sun on my skin and the breeze in my hair is invigorating.”
Helen is a member of the Naturist Foundation – whose motto is “bare is beautiful” – and debated naked sunbathing with brand and culture expert Nick Ede on Good Morning Britain last month.
“With all the things that are going on in the world at the moment, are we really that bothered about a nude body sunbathing in a quiet corner of a park?” she questions.
“There is so much else that we could be concerned about.”
Helen, from Bromley, was introduced to the naturist lifestyle through her now-husband Simon after they got chatting on Facebook in 2015, having known each other at school.
Shortly after lockdown, Simon suggested the pair go on an organised naked hike.
“I almost choked on my coffee,” she says. “Before I had a chance to change my mind, I found myself committing to attending my first organised naked walk the very next day.”
That was over two years ago, and since then, the couple have completed a number of naked walks for charity.
“If you’d have said to me three years ago that I would go on a naked hike, I would’ve thought you were mad,” she says. “So, what changed?
“It’s simple: I discovered naturism and I accept the skin I’m in.”
Organised naked hikes take place across the UK and Helen is urging other women to get involved.
“At first, I was a little worried about encountering the public,” she continues. “But the others reassured me that it was unlikely.
“And even if we did, it wouldn’t really matter as naked walks are perfectly legal in the UK.”
She has been waved at by farmers and even a postman in his van during a nude hike in the British countryside.
Getting her kit off out in the wildness has helped her body confidence rocket.
“My only wish is that other women join me next time,” Helen says. “It’s not boring, it’s not difficult, it’s not weird.
“Give it a try, you might like it too.”