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Cathy Sarraï Age, Death, Boyfriend, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Cathy Sarraï

Bio/Wiki
Real NameKalthoum Sarraï [1]All Africa
NicknameSuper Nanny [2]Melty
Profession(s)Anchor, Television Presenter
Famous RoleNanny in the French adaptation of the British reality TV show Super Nanny
Cathy Sarraï in Super Nanny
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)in centimeters- 167 cm
in meters- 1.67 m
in feet inches- 5’ 6”
Eye ColorHazel Green
Hair ColorBlonde
Career
DebutTV: Super Nanny-French Adaptation (2005) as a nanny
Super Nanny (2005)
Personal Life
Date of BirthSeptember 25, 1962, (Tuesday)
BirthplaceTunis, Tunisia
Date of Death19 January 2010 (Tuesday)
Place of DeathParis
Age (at the time of death)48 Years
Death CauseLung Cancer [3]All Africa
Zodiac signLibra
NationalityFrench
HometownTunis, Tunisia
Educational Qualification(s)• A Certificate of Professional Competence in Child Psychology
• A Diploma of Auxiliary in Pediatric Nurse [4]Paris Match
ReligionIslam [5]Paris Match
Relationships & More
Sexual Orientation Straight
Marital StatusDivorced
Marriage Date20 September 1979
Family
Husband/SpouseName Not Known
Cathy Sarraï with her husband
ChildrenSon- Hamadi
Cathy Sarraï with her son
Daughter(s)- Eptissem, Najoua
ParentsFather- Name Not Known
Mother- Name Not Known (died of breast cancer at the age of 54)
SiblingsCathy had 6 siblings.
Cathy Sarraï in childhood with her siblings
Favorite Things
Favourite FilmEyes Wide Shut (1999)
Favourite WriterAgatha Christie

Cathy Sarraï

Some Lesser Known Facts About Cathy Sarraï

  • Cathy Sarraï was a French TV presenter and anchor who is well-known for playing a nanny in the French adaptation of the British reality TV show “Super Nanny” (2005). The show featured parents who struggled to raise their children and Cathy helped them with basic child care and parenting techniques.
  • Cathy grew up in a middle-class family in Tunis, Tunisia.

    Cathy Sarraï's childhood picture

    Cathy Sarraï’s childhood picture

  • Such was her assiduity towards learning that she managed to complete her high school diploma in those days when it was usually reserved for boys.
  • Growing up in Tunisia, Cathy once came in the eyes of a French immigrant (who found her a good match for his son) and was espoused to his son when she was just 14 years old. In her family tradition, girls were married at a young age; her great-grandmother, Fatima, got married at the age of 14 and her grandmother, Mima got married when she was just 10 years old.

    Cathy Sarraï's image from her engagement

    Cathy Sarraï’s image from her engagement

  • In 1979, just five days prior to her seventeenth birthday, Sarraï entered into a wedlock with her fiancé and flew to Paris. There she was harassed by her mother-in-law and was forced to live the life of a recluse. While sharing the details of her marriage in her autobiography published in 2006, Cathy writes,

    Funny fate that mine, that of a teenager who endures the traditions of her country. While in Tunis, I lived in the sweet family cocoon, overnight, I found myself in the nineteenth arrondissement of Paris. A real leap into the unknown! In France, I learned everything: the language, the customs, my job…”

  • A few months after her marriage, Cathy got registered with a Family Allowance Fund and moved along with her husband to a small hotel in Paris.
  • While in Paris, Cathy learned French by watching television.
  • In order to manage her finances in France, Cathy initially worked as a cleaning lady at a canteen in a nursery school in Paris.
  • She then did a number of odd jobs to earn a living.
  • Soon after her graduation, Cathy started working as a childcare assistant and a child educator for the elite. While talking about the same in one of her books, she wrote,

    I rubbed shoulders with the greats of this world, I lived in insane luxury, I raised dozens of children.”

  •  In 2005, Cathy received an offer to play a nanny in the French adaptation of ‘Super Nanny,’ a British reality TV show that dealt with day-to-day issues that the new parents faced with their children. The show aired on the national French television channel M6 and managed to garner around 3.7 million viewers in Belgium and France, making Supper Nanny a familiar personality on M6.

  • Subsequently, she hosted some other parental coaching programs like Insane (2008) on Tunisian television and Aiche Naâmil (2008) on the Hannibal TV channel.
  • She was featured in Christophe Willem’s music video for his song Berlin (2009).
  • Cathy also appeared in the TV advertisement for Nintendo’s Wii console.
  • Apart from being a television presenter, Cathy was also a writer. She had authored three books; one of them was an autobiography.
  • While in her thirties, Cathy discovered that she was suffering from Lung cancer. Initially, she recovered from the disease, however, the disease resurfaced after 10 years. In December 2009, as a part of her treatment, she went to Saint-Cloud hospital to receive chemotherapy, but it could not take place. Her health deteriorated further and she passed away on 19 January 2010 (aged 47 at the time of death) in Paris due to Lung Cancer.
  • Soon after the news of her death reached social media, her fans from all over Europe and Maghreb started mourning through posts and tweets. One of her followers on Facebook wrote,

    It’s as if we knew her, through her advice, we brought her into our life …”

  • Two days after her death, her dead body, wrapped in a Tunisian flag, was repatriated to Tunis by airplane. The burial took place on 21 January 2010 at the Sidi-Salah cemetery in Bardo according to the Muslim rites. The cemetery was surrounded by a huge crowd which also included some top officials of Tunisia as Cathy was once the caretaker of the president’s only son, Mohamed Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.
  • After her demise, The M6 Group advertised on its site that they were there with Cathy’s family in their hard times and also announced a special show on their channel as a tribute to Cathy.
  • A week before she died, Cathy was planning a trip to Fiji with her friend Aouatef. She had also planned to travel to Istanbul for a week for shopping and a frenzied outing.
  • While having a conversation with her agent, Amir Zogib, based in Switzerland, just 5 days prior to her death, Cathy said that she was getting over it and that she was looking forward to having lunch with him in Paris.
  • Cathy was very fond of kids and enjoyed their company all the time. She understood the kids so well that once she saved the life of an 11-year-old who was trying to jump off the roof with the fear of getting caught for stealing a pass for a show. Understanding the situation, she quickly went up to him and persuaded him to get down by saying that she would save her from getting caught.

    Cathy Sarraï with kids

    Cathy Sarraï with kids

  • Sarraï loved partying in Arab clubs.
  • Prior to her death in January 2010, Cathy resided with her son, Hamadi, in western Paris.
  • Although she was greatly attached to her husband, she divorced him a couple of months before her death.

References/Sources:[+]

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