Halloween: What happened to Claudia Winkleman’s daughter? Fire regulations for fancy dress costumes explained

But for TV presenter Claudia Winkleman and her daughter Matilda, now 17, Halloween brings a sobering reminder of an incident in 2014 that turned a joyful tradition into a tragic accident.

That year, Matilda's costume accidentally caught fire, leaving her with severe burns and deeply affecting her mother.

While Claudia Winkleman remains private about her family, she shared last year that Matilda, who was preparing for her GCSEs during the pandemic, was doing well. However, the accident left a mark on the family and resonated with parents and caregivers as a safety warning around Halloween attire.

So, what exactly happened to Matilda Winkleman and have any new regulations been introduced for fancy dress costumes since the accident? Here’s everything you need to know.

What happened to Matilda Winkleman?

In 2014 Matilda, the daughter of Strictly Come Dancing host Claudia Winkleman, then aged eight, was enjoying Halloween festivities and wearing a seasonal witch’s costume when she accidentally brushed against a candle on a doorstep. Her costume caught fire and went up in flames within seconds.

The youngster suffered severe burns to her legs and spent three weeks in hospital receiving treatment for her injuries and recovering. Claudia took time off Strictly so she could constantly be by her bedside. Speaking about the incident at the time, Claudia said: “I heard her shout and she was on fire. It feels like she was on fire for hours. She went up.”

Neighbour Jamie Poulton was also left with second degree burns after trying to help Matilda and extinguish the fire with his bare hands. Describing the incident previously, he said: “It was like a potential horror film in front of me. This material just keeps reigniting and re-burning. And it is sticky, so it melts on the skin. It was horrific.”

Claudia was so traumatised by what happened to her daughter on that night she needed help from adolescent and child clinical psychologist Tanya Byron, a close friend of hers. Speaking to Byron on a podcast called “How Did We Get Here?” in 2020, Claudia revealed she suffered from flashbacks of the incident. She added: “Like a tsunami, it’s so enormous you think you’re going to drown. So you have to shove it to one side.”

Have new regulations been introduced for fancy dress costumes?

In the aftermath of the incident, people were horrified to learn how quickly some children’s costumes can go up in flames if they come into contact with a naked flame. Claudia began campaigning for kids’ costumes that did not meet certain safety standards, and were therefore a fire hazard, to be banned.

In 2017, after three years of fighting, Claudia won her battle and a rule change was introduced that made Halloween outfits for children, which are classed as toys, much safer. Industry body the British Retail Consortium (BRC) announced voluntary guidelines at the time for retailers and product makers, stating that fabric on toys cannot burn faster than 10mm per second. It is a huge improvement on the legislation that was in place prior to 2017 which allowed a burn rate of 30mm per second. An up-to-date version of these guidelines, published in 2022, retains the rules around the burn rate of 10mm/second.

Claudia said in 2017 that she was “pleased to hear” about the new guidelines, but added “as they are only voluntary, they are only a first step.” The BRC said at the time: “The terrible accident involving Claudia Winkleman’s daughter focused attention on what were seen as failings to the existing Toy Safety Standard for the flammability of children’s costumes.”