I’m sure you’ll agree – Lucy Punch looked incredible at the 2026 BAFTA TV Awards on Sunday evening, dressed to kill in a divine bright orange Stella McCartney floor-length dress.
And while the rest of the UK was celebrating Amandaland taking home Best Scripted Comedy (and let’s be honest, we all needed that win), I was zooming in on photos of the 48-year-old actress looking at her incredible skin and her radiant looking makeup.
We all know that Lucy plays the ultimate “I’ve had a little work done” alpha-mum Amanda to perfection but in real life she is very different to her on-screen character. Why? Because Lucy doesn’t believe in tweakments and has a refreshing attitude to beauty.
In a recent interview with YOU Magazine, she revealed “the way someone looks is the least interesting thing about anyone,” and finds the idea of tweakments “ghastly”. Though she doesn’t judge – “anyone can do whatever the hell they like,” she says – but for her, it’s a no.
Her actual routine is so simple it’s almost offensive: “I take off my make-up. I wash my face. I put some cream on my face and I rub it in. Big hat and hope for the best.”
© BBC/Merman/Natalie SeeryThe £39.99 Red Carpet Cheat
So, how did she get that lit-from-within glow for the biggest night in TV? I did some digging, and it turns out her makeup artist, the legendary Buster Knight, has a secret weapon that doesn’t involve a needle.
Buster prepped Lucy’s skin using Cosmetic Consult Miracle Skin Transformation, £39.99. It’s an overnight renewal treatment designed to smooth out any “lived-in” textures and refine pores while you’re busy getting your beauty sleep.
“I always tell my clients to use it the evening before a red carpet event because it makes the skin look like you’ve just had a facial,” Buster told me.
© Cosmetic ConsultThe Viral Ice Fix
But that’s not all! Buster also used the brand’s viral under-eye masks on Lucy during her time in the glam chair. If you’ve been on Instagram at all this fortnight, you’ve probably seen the Miracle Cryo Eye Masks, £34.99. Within days of the launch, they sold out because Katherine Ryan, Molly-Mae Hague and Coleen Rooney have been flooding our feeds with them.
Buster popped these on Lucy while doing her eye makeup, telling me: “It takes prep to another level. I applied them to Lucy while working on her eye makeup and they instantly helped brighten the under-eye area, reduce the appearance of dark circles and gave an extra boost of hydration. Her skin was absolutely glowing.”
© Miracle ConsultFor Lucy’s makeup, Buster used Hourglass Cosmetics products and wanted to create a “fresh, summer glow” that didn’t look like a mask of foundation.
“Lucy’s look was all about radiant, healthy-looking skin with a fresh, summer glow that translated beautifully on camera. We kept the makeup dewy and refined, allowing Lucy’s natural beauty to shine through with makeup that felt polished, but still fresh and modern.”
© Buster KnightSide note: I’m obsessed with the lip combo, which Buster revealed was Hourglass Lip Pencil in the shade Flaunt 2 and Uncover 4 with Hourglass Phantom Volumising Glossy Balm in the shade Wander 75 “blotted” on the lips.
The Real Amanda
Lucy has some refreshing thoughts about beauty standards now that she’s in her forties, and she’s the first to admit she’s not a walking beacon of confidence.
“‘You get to the point where, as a woman especially, you realise it’s in nobody else’s interest for you to feel good the way you are,” she said in the interview..
“If you think, ‘I look great as I am,’ That’s great for you. It’s not great for anyone else. “You are fine and beautiful as you are – it doesn’t matter,” Lucy said, adding, “The way someone looks is the least interesting thing about anyone.”
With more honesty, she added: “Just never forget, it’s only in your interest to feel good about yourself. You’re not going to feel better because of a mascara or a treatment or whatever.”
So, while I might be adding that £39.99 “facial in a box” to my basket as we speak, I’m also taking a leaf out of Lucy’s book and realising that maybe I’m already enough.
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