Pregnant Scots superstar Karen Gillan shares her 'weird' cravings as she prepares for birth of her first baby

She has spoken often of missing Scottish foods after her acting career saw her move to America.

However, Scots star Karen Gillan has been documenting altogether different cravings she has put down to her pregnancy.

Taking to social media platform TikTok, the actress revealed that she ‘can’t get enough’ of eating raw vegetables as she approaches her due date.

In a video captioned ‘I guess it’s good? But weird’, Gillan said: ‘Anyone else have these pregnancy cravings of just raw vegetables?’

The Jumanji star, who then proceeded to take a large bite out of what appeared to be a peeled squash, declared: ‘I just can’t get enough.’

In a different video posted to TikTok last month, Gillan, 37, discussed another new culinary obsession - quiche.

In the clip, posted to her 2.2 million followers, the Guardians of the Galaxy star said: ‘So, new pregnancy craving - quiche.

‘What the hell, I’ve never thought about quiche in my life. I just ordered three different quiches because I need to find the best one now, so I’ll let you know how that goes.’.

Aside from raw veg and quiche, Gillan has also spoken publicly about her less niche cravings, sharing that digestive biscuits are now ‘all I can think about’, despite having ‘never liked’ the popular snack at any point during her ‘entire life’.

Studies have shown that up to 90 per cent of pregnant women experience at least one food craving, most commonly during their first trimester.

However, the scientific reasoning for pregnancy cravings remains unclear, with some theories suggesting that pregnancy hormones can heighten one’s sense of smell and taste, while others assert that it is the body’s way of compensating for certain deficiencies, such as iron or calcium.

The Inverness-born actress, well known for her role of Amy Pond, a companion to the eleventh Doctor in popular science fiction television series Doctor Who, debuted her bump in September on the red carpet at The Life of Chuck premiere in Canada.

She is expecting her first child with husband Nick Kocher, whom she wed in May 2022 at Castle Toward near Dunoon in Argyll. A-list guests, such as Julia Roberts and Avengers co-star Robert Downey Junior, were reported to have been in attendance.

The Scottish film star has not yet publicly disclosed the gender of her baby, nor the due date.

Taking to Instagram on September 10 to announce her pregnancy news, Gillan, pictured cradling her bump, said: ‘COMING SOON! “The Life of Chuck” and “untitled baby”.

In 2018, Gillan revealed her desire to eventually have children. 

Appearing on Michael Rosenbaum’s Inside of You podcast, she said: ‘I definitely want them, it’s going to be hilarious. I think I would be a good mum. I feel like I would definitely be good at playing with the kids, like being one of them.’

Gillan, regarded as one of Scotland’s biggest Hollywood stars, boasts an Instagram following of 7.7 million and was named the third-highest grossing star at the box office in 2019 behind Dwayne Johnson and Samuel L Jackson.

She relocated to California in 2013, where she currently resides with her husband, however, has spoken publicly about how she still considers Inverness as home and hopes to return later in life.

Speaking on the Radio Times Podcast in June, Gillan said: ‘I’m homesick every single day of my life.

‘I think there’s a possibility that I’ll come back at some point. I’ve made my house very Scottish-looking; it doesn’t feel like I’m in LA at all. It reminds me of a granny’s home in Scotland - which is what I am in my soul.’