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The Sun
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Parents-of-22 Noel and Sue Radford fight back tears as they reveal ‘heartbreaking' moment that rocked their family
PARENTS of Britain's biggest family have revealed the 'heartbreaking' moment that rocked their family. In the most recent episode of 22 Kids & Counting, which will air on Channel 5 later this evening, Sue and Noel Radford fight back tears after learning that their best friend's daughter, Sophie Walker, 17, had died. 12 12 12 On 6 July 2024, Sophie's cancer battle came to a devastating end, leaving the Radford family 'broken.' Now, during the emotional scenes of the latest episode of the Radford show, dad-of-22 Noel, 54, revealed the exact moment he received a shocking text from his close friend Jamie Walker, informing the family of Sophie's passing. The brave teenager started a four-week course of chemotherapy shortly after being diagnosed on October 25 2017. Over the years, she went into remission twice but relapsed four times. She battled for seven years with Wilms tumour - a rare type of kidney cancer - and doctors discovered a tumour on her spine, which led to her tragic passing. Sophie died with her twin sister Megan, 17, by her side, on what would have been the 10th birthday of Sue and Noel's 17th child Alfie, who was stillborn. As Noel and his wife-of-32-years Sue fought back tears after hearing the news, Noel said: 'God, it's horrible isn't it? 'I got the text from Jamie that we've been absolutely dreading.' Noel gave viewers a close-up look at the tragic text, which alongside broken heart emojis, read: 'Sophie has gone, mate, hopefully to a better place.' Moments later, Noel, who recently met his birth mother for the first time since being adopted at just 10 days old, explained: 'It doesn't feel right. Britain's biggest family The Radfords rally together and sell some of their 'Millionaire mansion' possession in the wake of 'devastating news' 'Their 17-year-old daughter has been taken away from them.' For Noel and Sue, sharing the devastating news with their huge family would come as a challenge, as the pie shop owner shared: "Obviously the older ones understand, but to the likes of Hallie, Phoebe, Archie, Bonnie, they don't quite understand it the same.' The Radfords and the Walkers THE Radford family have been friends with Rebecca's 10 kids since 2013. Rebecca, who runs a hostel with husband Jamie, said: "We used to live in Morecambe, which is how we met the Radford family. "When I was pregnant with the twins, I told my midwife that I was nervous about my growing family. "My midwife told me that one of her ladies had just had her 13th baby and was doing great, which made me feel better. "Morecambe isn't a big place, so my husband Jamie and I reached out to Sue and Noel." The two families quickly bonded and would often go on holiday together to France or Cornwall. In 2014, the Walkers moved to Edinburgh but remained close to the Radfords, seeing them several times a year. Mum-of-22 Sue, 50, who had her first child at the age of 13, found herself lost for words and it was clear that the family were left equally as heartbroken as their parents, as seven-year-old Archie admitted: 'Phoebe's just came into the room and said Sophie's passed away. 'I don't really believe her, I don't really want to believe her. 'I didn't expect anything like this to happen, especially on Alfie's birthday.' Following this, Oscar, 13, acknowledged: 'She was literally like a sister to us. 'I'm trying to distract myself. I don't want it to be in my mind all the time.' Gutted by the news, the family's matriarch then claimed: 'Rebecca messaged to say that our babies will forever share this day.' I didn't think this day would ever come, you always thought she'd get better and live her life and yet, here we are Noel Radford Distraught for their close friends, Noel added: 'I just worry about Jamie and Rebecca and the rest of the family, how they're going to cope. 'Everything they do now is going to be without Sophie.' Later in the episode, on the day before the funeral, Noel continued: 'I didn't think this day would ever come, you always thought she'd get better and live her life and yet, here we are.' What is Wilms tumour? WILMS tumours are a type of kidney cancer that mainly affect children. They are also called nephroblastomas as they develop from cells called nephroblasts. Kidney cancer in children is rare but Wilms tumour is the most common type. About 85 children between the ages of 0 and 14 years are diagnosed with Wilms tumour each year in the UK - mostly children under 5. Rarely, Wilms tumours can develop in older children and very rarely, in adults. Wilms tumours usually only affect one kidney but in fewer than 10 out of 100 children, they can affect both kidneys. The most common symptom is a painless swelling of the abdomen. Parents might notice a lump in the tummy when bathing the baby, or if their child suddenly jumps a nappy size. A healthcare worker might notice a swollen tummy when the child is having a routine appointment. Other less common symptoms include: blood in their wee (urine) pain caused by bleeding inside the tumour loss of appetite raised blood pressure high temperature (fever) weight loss constipation generally feeling unwell being irritable due to their tummy feeling uncomfortable shortness of breath and cough (usually if the cancer has spread to the lungs) Two of the Radford children, Ellie and Aimee, prepared a speech for the emotional day and whilst holding back tears, 19-year-old Aimee cried: 'You would have never thought that we would be writing a goodbye to Sophie, when she's so young, had her whole life ahead of her.' To which Ellie, 20, agreed: 'Yeah, I think that's why it's so hard to write.' 12 12 Aimee then sobbed: 'Knowing that you're saying a goodbye is really hard.' To this, Noel, who broke down in tears on the last series, observed: 'I'm extremely proud of Aimee and Ellie wanting to get up and speak. I couldn't do it. No matter how difficult it will be, they're gonna do it. 'Grief is always going to be hard, but focusing on the good times you've had can really help.' Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club 12 12 12
Daily Mail
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Heart-stopping moment Britain's biggest family the Radfords track down long lost grandma - and she's floored to learn she has a whopping 22 grandkids
Noel Radford fights back the tears as he is reunited with his birth mum in the upcoming episode of 22 Kids on Sunday. The 54-year-old, who shares 22 children with his wife Sue, 50, decided to see if he could find his biological mother and filmed it all part of a special episode for the programme. The reality show returns to our screens this Sunday and the first two instalments are special episodes, including one where Noel dives into his family history. In an exclusive first look of Noel's reunion with his mum, he drops the huge bombshell that she has 22 grandkids, shortly after meeting Sue for the first time. Noel says of Sue: 'This is the mum to all our kids. We've got quite a lot. 'We've got 22 of them.' The 54-year-old, who shares 22 children with his wife Sue, 50, decided to see if he could find his biological mother and filmed it all part of a special episode for the programme 'Wow,' Noel's mum simply replies. Noel adds: '11 boys and 11 girls.' She shoots back: 'That is a lot!' The camera then pans back at Sue and she tells viewers: 'A lot of people say "Oh I couldn't cope with that many..."' 'But we wouldn't swap it for the world, would we?' Noel says. 'They are our world. They are our everything.' Noel's mum tells him: 'Really nice.' The voiceover says: 'It's taken decades to happen. But Noel has done it.' After searching for his birth mum over the past three years, Noel decides to enlist help from an adoption specialist to see if he can finally see her again. Throughout the special, Sue and their 22 kids share their concerns about the search. Some fans of the family may not know that the parents were both adopted as babies. Sue and Noel met as teens and went on to have their first child when Sue was 14 and Noel was 18. The pair tied the knot in 1993. The family have opened up their home to fans since starring in the Channel 4 reality show called 15 Kids And Counting in 2015, before following up with 16 Kids And Counting. 22 Kids And Counting is the latest series, which first aired in 2023. In the last series of the show, Noel opened up about his childhood during a counselling session. He recalled: 'I think I was about seven or eight years old when my mum and dad told me I was adopted. 'I remember going to school the next day saying "I'm adopted, I'm special". 'I guess the older you get the more curious you get and the other thing is, the clock's ticking. I'm not getting any younger and she won't be getting any younger. 'I can't leave it another 10 years or so and then find out that she's died, then have regrets for not doing it.' 22 Kids & Counting: Noel's Long Lost Mum airs Sunday 20th July at 8pm. Watch and stream on 5
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Mum of Britain's biggest family Sue Radford reveals the heartbreaking reason she'll NEVER try to track down her birth mother
The mum of Britain's biggest family, Sue Radford, has revealed the heartbreaking reason why she never wants to search for her birth mum. On Tuesday, Noel admitted he'd secretly met up with his biological mother for the first time in January after being given up for adoption at just ten days old. It followed a two-year search to find her. But Sue, 50 – also adopted and who lives in Morecambe with Noel and their 22 children - never wants to track her birth mum down. And in emotional scenes airing on Sunday when the Radford's 22 Kids And Counting returns to 5 for a new series, she reveals the tragic stillbirth of her 17th child, Alfie, in July 2014 has made her vow never to embark on a search. The proud mum of 22 children tells the programme: 'I can't put myself in my birth mother's position because I would never give a child up. 'As a mother, you have that child inside you for nine months, you grow that child, then you give birth to that child. And in emotional scenes airing on Sunday when the Radford's '22 Kids and Counting' returns to 5 for a new series, she reveals the tragic stillbirth of her 17th child, Alfie, in July 2014 has made her vow never to embark on a search 'For me I just could never imagine ever giving that child over.' Going on to explain why the loss of Alfie has made her more resolute than ever, she added: 'I didn't feel quite so strongly about not ever finding my birth parents until we did go through the loss of losing Alfie. 'When you do lose a child, you don't have that option, you don't have that option to give the child away for adoption. 'The choice was taken away from you because that child is gone. When we did lose Alfie, it definitely changed my mindset on adoption. 'My mum and dad are my mum and dad and that's it. I just never want to find anything out about my birth parents but that is just how I feel. 'Obviously Noel doesn't feel like that and our attitudes towards birth parents for children who have been adopted are obviously very different.' Sue admits their opposing stances on finding their birth parents has caused disagreements. She tells 22 Kids and Counting: 'It has caused a few disagreements with me and Noel. We both have very different opinions about our birth parents. 'Noel has always been the person whose adoption has always bothered him. 'He really has found the need to know more but for me, I've always been the total opposite, I've never felt the need to ever do that, and never felt the need I wanted to do that.' But she insists she has never once stood in his way. Sue, married to Noel for 32 years, tells the TV series: 'Because he feels very strongly about doing this then he has to do it regardless of what I think about finding my birth parents. 'But it has been quite difficult for me.' On Tuesday, Noel admitted meeting his birth mum had been emotional. 'And whilst he enjoyed getting to know her a bit better, he stressed it would never lead to a close relationship because he had and always would regard his adoptive parents as his parents. He explained: 'For me, my mum and dad are my mum and dad. She gave birth to me – but that's it.' He added: 'My mum (who sadly died five years ago) was always very open. I could ask her anything, she wouldn't judge you, she would give you her honest opinion. 'I think if she was here today, she would have thought me going looking for my mum was the right thing to do. 'I am also very thankful to Sue she has seen it through with me.' Also during the first programme of the new series, the adoption expert, Glesni Evans, who helped Noel track down his birth mum, does admit the fact the couple have such different stances makes them unique. She tells the series: 'Noel and Sue's situation is very unique. 'I have never had a situation where both people were adopted and one wants to search for their birth family and the other doesn't. 'I can imagine it can be quite challenging.' Sue and Noel are parents to 22 children - Chris, 36, Sophie, 31, Chloe, 29, Jack, 28, Daniel, 26, Luke, 24, Millie, 23, Katie, 22, James, 21, Ellie, 20, Aimee, 19, Josh, 18, Max, 16, Tillie, 15, Oscar, 13, Casper, 12, Hallie, 10, Phoebe, eight, Archie, seven, Bonnie, six and Heidie, five. Sadly, the couple's 17th child, Alfie, was stillborn on July 6 2014.
The Sun
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Mum-of-22 Sue Radford says she'll NEVER meet her biological mother & she had ‘tension' with husband Noel when he met his
NOEL Radford may have finally met his birth mother, but now, his wife Sue has shared that she will 'never' look for hers. After being given up for adoption at just ten days old, earlier this week, Noel, the 22 Kids & Counting star opened up about meeting his birth mother for the first time. 8 8 8 8 Noel, now 54, was born on Christmas Eve in 1970 in Stockport, but less than two weeks later he was handed over to his new parents who, he stressed, he will always regard as his mum and dad. But eager to get more answers about his childhood, in scenes that will be aired during the new series of the couple's hit Channel 5 reality series this Sunday, the father of Britain's biggest family enlisted the help of adoption expert Glesni Evans to help seek answers once and for all. However, during the first episode of the latest series of the highly anticipated show, Noel's wife-of-32-years Sue, who turned 50 in March, revealed she has no desire to meet her real parents. In dramatic and emotional scenes of 22 Kids & Counting: Noel's Long Lost Mum, after Noel established contact with his birth mother, old wounds opened for Sue about her own adoption. And not only has it been challenging for the mum-of-22, but it's also caused 'disagreements' between the couple. Sue, who had her first child at the age of 13, admitted: 'It has been quite difficult for me, it has caused a few disagreements between me and Noel. 'We have very different opinions about our birth parents. 'I can't put myself into my birth mother's position because I could never give a child up. 'As a mother, you have that child inside you for nine months, you grow that child and then you give birth to that child and for me, I could never, ever imagine handing that child over.' Having said that, the family's matriarch confessed that her feelings did change slightly after their 17th child, Alfie, was stillborn on 6 July 2014. Emotional moment Noel Radford learns his birth mother has been found - and he has a brother Sue, who was adopted as a baby, continued: 'I didn't feel quite so strongly about not ever finding my birth parents until we did go through the loss of losing Alfie. 'When you do lose a child, you don't have that option, do you? I could never want to find anything out about my birth parents. But that's just how I feel Sue Radford 'You don't have the option to put that child up for adoption, that choice was taken away from you because that child is gone. 'For me, when we lost Alfie, it definitely changed my mindset on adoption.' 'It's difficult' Despite this, Sue, who recently missed her 21-year-old daughter Katie give birth whilst she on holiday in Dubai, added: 'My mum and dad are my mum and dad and that's it. 'I could never want to find anything out about my birth parents. But that's just how I feel, obviously Noel doesn't feel like that.' Meet the Radfords' 22 kids Christopher, 36 The oldest Radford child, Chris works as a glazier and is married to Nicole Spencer. They have three children: Maise-Paige, eight, Jacob, five, and Oakland, three. Sophie Rose, 31 Sophie has her own cleaning company, Time for Sparkle, and shares three children with husband Joseph Bradley: Daisy, 12, Ayprill, 10, and Leo, nine. Chloe Anne, 29 Chloe's a make-up artist and is mum to daughter Milla, two, and son Bodhi, three months, with her boyfriend, Jake Wallace. Jack Richard, 28 Publicity-shy Jack prefers to stay out of the limelight, and hasn't publicly shared his relationship status or career. Daniel Leon, 26 After training to be in the RAF, Daniel had a near-fatal car crash in Bristol, which played out on his parents' TV show. He overcame his subsequent fear of driving in order to emigrate to Australia. Luke James, 24 Luke came out to his parents as bisexual in 2021 - warming viewers' hearts after Sue and Noel attended a Pride festival with him that summer. He works for the family's pie business. Millie Jo, 23 Millie is married to Harley Passmore and is mum to three children: Ophelia, four (from a previous relationship), and Chester, three, and Elodie, one (whom she shares with Harley). Katie Louise, 22 Katie works at a nursery and shares one nine-month-old son, Ronnie, with her boyfriend Connor Carter. James Edward, 21 James is busy working in the family's pie shop and hopes to run it someday. Ellie May, 20 Ellie's training to be a hairdresser, and has also worked part-time in a hotel housekeeping job. Aimee Elizabeth, 19 Aimee's also qualified to be a hairstylist and has famously practised her skills on family members in video clips. Josh Benjamin, 18 According to his parents, Josh was a 'nightmare' at school and he didn't commit to his studies - but that all changed when he found his passion as a sports coach. Max Joseph, 16 Max was diagnosed with autism in 2021, and has since struggled with socialising. Working in the pie shop has apparently helped him. Tillie May, 15 One of Tillie's legs stopped growing when she was just 18 months old, due to an infection. In 2019, she was fitted with a frame to help strengthen the limb, but - last year - it was revealed she'd need further treatment and potential surgery. Oscar Will, 13 Oscar has been described as having 'incredible initiative' at school. Casper Theo, 12 Casper always dreamt of being a footballer, but was gutted on his family's show when he didn't make it into a Premier League club's youth team. Alfie Thomas Alfie would have been the Radfords' 17th child, but he was tragically stillborn at three months. The Radfords refer to him as their 'missing heartbeat'. Hallie Alphia Beau, 10 Hallie's middle name was given in tribute to her late brother, who died just a year before her birth. Phoebe Willow, eight Phoebe has been awarded prizes at school for her achievements, much to her parents' pride. Archie Rowan, seven As the 20th Radford baby, Archie was expected to be the last - marking 'a nice, even number' in Sue's words. Bonnie Raye, six Again, Bonnie was expected to 'finish' the brood, but plans changed. Heidie Rose, five The youngest Radford child, mum Sue has since insisted: 'No, that's it now!' Moments later, Noel, who broke down in tears on the last series, confessed: 'It's tough, I totally get where Sue is coming from, she doesn't want to find her birth mum and I can understand why she doesn't. 'She might not understand why I do quite so much. It's difficult.' In the following scenes, some of the older Radford kids gathered to discuss the growing 'tension' between Noel and Sue. Chloe, 29, who recently became a mum-of-two following a 'brutal' birth with her second child, explained: 'When I first found out that dad was reaching out to his birth mum, I didn't really have any concerns or anything about how it would affect us. 'I was more concerned because mum and dad have very different views on meeting their birth parents, so what's gonna happen?' Her younger brother James, 21, then added: 'I think there's tension in the sense that there's one person on one side and one on another. 8 8 'I definitely understand why mum feels the way she does. Blood doesn't really matter to mum. 'Dad's quite vulnerable during the whole process…it's concerning. He struggles to process it. I think closure is what dad is looking for. 'I definitely see both sides. I'll support dad doing it and I'll support mum not doing it.' The Radford Family's TV history THE first ever episode of 22 Kids and Counting aired on Channel 5 on 22nd February, 2021. After the first series - which had just four episodes in it - performed well, Channel 5 commissioned a 10-episode second season, which was broadcast in 2022. They went on to commission a third series, which included a Christmas special aired in December 2023. The fourth season began airing in January 2024, but fans were left disappointed when it stopped after six episodes. Sue and Noel reassured viewers that they were just taking a little break, and the next episode will be airing on 21st July. You can catch up on all previous episodes of 22 Kids and Counting on My 5, here. 'Growing tensions' Later in the episode, Noel headed out for a walk by himself, as he admitted: 'There's not just me to think about. It's become difficult in the house now.' Reflecting on recent events, he stressed: 'Me doing this has caused upset for Sue. We can't even talk about it anymore, which is upsetting. 'It's a massive thing. To upset Sue along the way is the last thing I want. But I've started this process now. Not only have the couple been open about Noel's search to find his mother on their TV show, but in a recent interview with The Sun, Sue set the record straight and highlighted: 'As far as I am concerned I didn't and still don't want to find my birth mum. "Noel is very different and it's always bothered him. 'It's been hard. We are both adopted and with our different views, we did clash at times.' Following this, Noel reassured: 'There were no headlocks or anything. 'It was more of an emotional clash and I totally get why Sue doesn't want to meet her parents and that's fine.' Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club 8 8
Scottish Sun
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
I finally met birth mum after being adopted at 10 days old…her reaction to our big brood was priceless says Noel Radford
Exclusive KID YOU NOT I finally met birth mum after being adopted at 10 days old…her reaction to our big brood was priceless says Noel Radford The 22 Kids and Counting star reveals the sad reason he sought out his birth mum after all these years
