Grace Keeling, better known as GK Barry, is a social media sensation taking the internet by storm since March 2020. With over 281 million likes on TikTok, and just under six million followers across her social platforms, Grace is a definite trailblazer. Her highly successful podcast, Saving Grace, is one of the UK’s most popular podcasts, with over a million listeners and 11 million YouTube views each month. Lynda Clark met up with her to chat about her life, work and her first foot on the property ladder.
Photos: James Rudland
Talking to Grace was really special as you don’t get to speak to somebody so honest, humorous and straightforward that often. One thing that was particularly refreshing was her positive and happy outlook and our Friday afternoon chat certainly set me up for the weekend!
Grace was born in Cambridge but when she was two the family moved to the British Virgin Islands. “It was a wonderful life – coconuts, sea and sun – I couldn’t have asked for more.” Eventually, she moved back to England with her mum and stepfather and settled in the Southampton area, which she liked.
“I was always painfully shy and a bit weird. I was awkward, tall and lanky and my school days didn’t hold very happy memories, but I did have a great friendship group. I didn’t do very well as I wasn’t academic and ended up with only two GCSEs in Drama and English. I then went to college and did Level 2 in Media and Level 3 in TV and Film. I had some good friends there even though we were ‘the nerds’ but I really found my niche. I eventually went to Nottingham Trent University and studied for a degree in Film as I had it in my head I wanted to be a TV camera person. While I was there I lived in halls with one of my friends from secondary school. We had great fun and it was there I discovered who I really was and what I was all about.”
Then in 2020, we experienced the pandemic and lockdown. “I had no idea if we were ever going to get through the lockdowns and so with not much else to do, I started posting on TikTok. Very quickly my account got lots of attention and I thought perhaps I should really start trying to turn my account into a proper platform, but I was afraid people at my school might see it and I really didn’t want that to happen. So it was less obvious who I was, my old school friend and roommate, Tatiana, suggested I use my initials, which are GK, and her surname, which is Barry, and so GK Barry was born! I then began posting really outrageous stories and between March to August I had 100,000 views – it was seriously rapid growth and amazing, but it took up a lot of time. So, in December I decided to quit everything and try and make it work and threw myself into it full-time.”
Grace did go back and get a master’s degree in Digital Marketing, but to her own admission, she loved social media and partying more. “I prioritised TikTok over my work and I probably could have got a much better grade. As you can imagine, I had to tell my parents what I was doing and that was a very difficult conversation as I wasn’t initially making any money. It was a huge risk and I am sure my parents thought it was a complete waste of time that I was just sitting there making stories for TikTok when I could have had a ‘proper’ job. They get it now though.”
Then everything changed and Grace was catapulted into the big time. She was invited on The Fellas podcast, which she wasn’t sure about but said, “I thought, what have I got to lose? And we had an outrageous hour which was such fun. They were so impressed they advised me to start my own podcast but I wasn’t really that bothered. Eventually, I decided to give it a go and started my own podcast under The Fellas Studio called Saving Grace, which was the number-one podcast in the charts for months! I now take my podcast on UK tours and do live shows which are always completely sold out. I have guests and work with the audience and it’s rather like a hen-do/brunch. You never know quite what is going to happen but it’s so funny and we all have the best time. On my second tour, I had some great guests including Gemma Collins and Louie Spence. I have 12 separate tour dates this year and I am quite excited, we are going to Southend and I have never been there!”
Many people will have watched Grace on the series I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! in 2024. As a result of that she is doing her third tour – Saving Grace: Jungle Fever, which will kick off in September. “Being on the show was an incredible experience, I interviewed for it the year before but didn’t get it and then I interviewed again the next year and they came back and said they wanted me, which was when it really struck me what I had got myself into. I was living in denial and was well out of my comfort zone but it was an incredible experience.
“You arrive in Australia a week before they start filming and are kept pretty much in isolation as they don’t want you to see or speak to anyone from the ‘real’ world beforehand. My chaperone, Peter, was amazing and really supportive. I just couldn’t believe that I was waking up in the jungle and showering under a waterfall and the iconic Ant and Dec were there too, which was a huge bonus. The challenges were not pleasant but I met some wonderful people. I loved spending time with Reverend Richard Coles – nobody really understood me like he did – he is insane and the funniest person with all his innuendos. We really bonded and will always be friends. When I came out of the jungle, I took over Wembley Arena for my Saving Grace: XXX-Mas Special. It was a knock-out but it was madness as I was living in the jungle thinking I am going to be in Wembley in a week’s time – it all felt so surreal.”
Grace is also one of the youngest panellists on Loose Women on ITV. “I can’t believe I am as old as the show! I was a little concerned that my opinions would be too controversial, especially as the show and audience are slightly older. But I was so wrong as they are all incredible and we have really interesting conversations on every topic under the sun and I never have to hold back.”
Just over a year ago Grace bought her first home, which like all first time buyers wasn’t easy. It’s a huge investment and such a minefield. “Nobody ever explained the process or even what Stamp Duty is, and that buying furniture was such a big decision to make. I was on my way home from a shoot and drove through this little town and thought it was perfect. So, I decided to look at properties there and didn’t really think it through. I found a new build house which I really liked but I rushed into it without thinking everything through properly. When I moved in I was living on my own for the first time which was a wake-up call. I didn’t have Wi-Fi for ages as I just couldn’t get organised enough to sort it out! It takes me about one hour and 40 minutes to get into central London and around two hours to go to the studios to film for Loose Women. I am not near my mum, and my girlfriend, Ella Rutherford, is a professional football player and plays for Ipswich Town, we now live together and she commutes to Ipswich every day – so it’s not ideal.”
When it comes to advice for first time buyers Grace said, “Don’t get pressurised as the climate is hard, so don’t rush but take your time. I am a terrible saver so my advice would be to save like mad and get an ISA, I also got one of those debit cards that when you buy something with it, it rounds it up to the nearest pound and deposits the difference into a savings account. There are quite a few to choose from and you would be surprised that the money really adds up. Ask as many questions as you can and if you buy a new build ask for a proper inspection when you move in as they can have problems.”
Grace is an Ambassador for the Teenage Cancer Trust and has spent time with the young people the charity supports. She’s also invited them to her upcoming tour later this year.
Apart from her social media fame, she has appeared in endless TV shows and even a Netflix film. The list is so impressive and I’m breathless when she tells me how she manages to fit it all in. But I have to ask if she has any plans for the future? “I think you will see more of me and Reverend Richard Coles and we’re planning some more television work as well, so watch this space…“
As we finish, Grace is planning her next trip to watch Ella play football. “I go to as many games as I can – I still don’t know the rules but a glass of prosecco helps!” Although Grace is an internet personality, social media influencer, presenter, key industry commentator and a general media sensation, she is one of the easiest people to talk to and she’s only just begun. As the weekend approaches, I think I might join Grace and have a glass of prosecco!
First Time Buyer is an exciting bi-monthly glossy which takes a stylish and comprehensive look at all the options available, setting them out in an entertaining and informative way, and helping potential customers navigate their way through what is often a daunting and complex process. We dispel the myths, reinforce the facts and arm the reader with the tools necessary to make their homeownership dreams a reality.
