What is like to be Mrs. Bono
People are always saying you can't have a normal life if you're married to a famous person, but what is normal?" asks Ali Hewson, wife of rock legend and political campaigner Bono. "I've never met a normal person. Everyone has quirks. "Contrary to stereotypes about tempestuous rock 'n' roll relationships, the Hewsons have been happily married for 23 years. Between the epic tours that U2 undertake every few years, the family have, as Ali puts it, "a fairly regular life" in Killiney with their four children, Jordan, 15, Eve, 13, Elijah, five, and John Abraham, three. "Ireland's a great place to raise children," she enthuses. "The Irish are protective of our family's privacy, and have a very down-to-earth attitude to us which keeps our feet on the ground."
But to the rest of the world, Ali, 43, is married to a megastar. For many years she kept a low profile, supporting local causes and quietly raising the children, rarely agreeing to a spell in the limelight. In 1994, she presented Black Wind, White Land, an award-winning documentary on the after-effects of the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, and later publicly protested against the Sellafield nuclear plant, taking her remonstrations to Downing Street.
"I hate being referred to only as 'Bono's wife'," she admits. "But it does enable me to get out there and do something. When I first got involved in television, standing in front of a camera was the last thing I wanted to do. Having one person in the family in the public eye is enough. After all, someone's got to buy the milk. But Bono persuaded me. He made me see the alternative was to watch suffering on television, and just say, isn’t it terrible?' I could be voiceless, but I choose for causes that matter not to be."
It was Bono's trips to Africa that inspired her new undertaking, an ethical clothing line. "The thing Africans want more than anything is trade~ not aid," she explains. "Charity can shore up the gaps, but trade can turn Africa around. The best way to make a change was within the clothing industry - it's labour-intensive and is a great employer." So Bono, Ali and the designer Rogan launched Edun (edun.ie), making beautifully crafted, elegant clothes and creating sustainable employment in developing areas of the world such as South America and Africa. "Bono has always felt that part of the responsibility of fame is to do something with it," explains Ali. "There are always people who criticise him for not keeping his head down; but he's not the type who could take the money and run."
Ali's family has been in the public eye for years, and she often shoulders criticism about Bono's outspoken stance on political issues. "Fame has huge advantages; she says, conceding that many have found it hard to reconcile the Hewsons' ideology with their privileged life.” But it's a hard road," she adds. "You give up a lot when you lose your privacy."
Every few years - as pan of one of the biggest rock bands on the planet - Bono will spend over a year touring the world; a huge amount of time for anyone to be apart from their family. "The separation side of touring can be hard," she admits guardedly. "It's an inevitable part of our world; Bono and I have certainly been through enough of it. But it’s particularly hard on children; a tour can feel like a huge chunk of their lives. For this one we've been lucky, we've been able to bring them with us. I wouldn't have gone unless they were coming; I really couldn't have been separated from them."
Ali and the children have spent the past two months travelling with the band in South America and the US. "It’s not physically possible to be away from home for the whole tour, but I feel my children need to know why their dad’s away so much; she explains. “It’s important for them to see what he does, to understand it's not all fun. But there are lots of fathers who are away from their families for longer periods who work on oil rigs or who are in the army. There are tougher lives than this, I know that."
Ali's anti-nuclear campaigning and involvement with Edun demonstrate her passionate connection with issues relating to children and the family. "Edun came about because I don't want my children to wear clothes made by other people's children," she says fervently. 'I have very strong feelings about the issues I get involved in.” She has a realistic attitude to her own role as a mother. "I had an amazing upbringing and great parents, so of course my aim is to make my children’s lives as stable as possible. But it's a challenge. You try and do the best you can, in whatever circumstatnces you're in."
Ali has said in the past that the reason her marriage has survived is that they give each other space: "We allow each other to pursue our goals. "Her respect for him is plain to see. "He has an incredible energy," she says. "He really believes poverty can be eliminated. He feels things are changing, that people are becoming more mobilised and that's what drives him on. I admire him. He rarely gets it wrong. If he sticks his neck out, it's him who gets burned. He knows that, and he's prepared to pay that cost. His work is something I've always encouraged. We are completely as one on that."
Well, that's it, hope you enjoy it as much as I did (I know you will) We love you Ali!!! She's definitely the best, so down-to-earth and lovely...I would say tons of great things about her...sorry if there's any mistake, I was typing like mad!!!!