Watching documentary about the family with 22 kids!

[mothersdayhmm]

The Radley family. How do they do it? They seem to be really good parents actually. I cannot imagine how you cope with so many kids though. My blood pressure is through the roof just watching this! There are multiple dogs as well! I have 2 kids (adults now) and that was enough for me. How will they cope if all 22 go to Uni? My brain is fried!

I can relate to an adopted adult’s desire to create their own larger family and see themselves in their children. It can feel like a very deep compulsion. But 22 suggests something has spun completely beyond control.

I can’t get over their ages when the first child was born. Surely even thirty years ago a fourteen year old mum would have come to the attention of social services.

The grandparents (ie adoptive parents of Sue and Noel) are almost non-existent in the programmes. I’d be very interested in a documentary about them.

Ed for spelling and clarity

I’m not sure how you can watch any of their shows and think they’re great parents. Sue is definitely dealing with trauma, if not some other MH and neurodivergence too. She seems quite disconnected from the kids, if anything Noel seems the more engaged parent, but he’s also somewhat sinister too. I feel like his affable dad routine is for the camera and occasionally you see flashes of temper which seem probable is more what he’s actually like.

Couldn’t agree more.

I agree. There’s something very vulnerable about Sue.

In addition I think one of the kids has autism,? Max, and another problems with her leg, so that will add to the monthly income

Maybe you couldn’t but some of us manage 4 just fine, thank you

If you go to Tattle, families thread, you will see a lot about the Radfords!

Her Mum was in some of the early episodes.

They weren't happy about the relationship and basically Sue and Noel threatened to run away if they weren't allowed to see each other.

It seemed the Mum got no support from social services or anyone.

It’s probably the fact that the dad was 18 when the first child was conceived whilst the mother was 13.

There is something a bit vacant about Sue. Behind the eyes.

Men who have sex (not entirely sure sex is the word that should be used) with a 13 year old child don’t make good parents.

Ah yes, back in the day when contraception and safe abortion was unavailable, and husbands were legally able to rape their wives.

In the early episodes of 15 KAC , Sue would have a newborn, and several toddlers/preschoolers,(all who would understandably need lots of close attention) .... as well as young primary age kids, tweens and teens. In a house as big as theirs on different levels it would be virtually impossible to know what they were all doing. In one episode they said that iirc 2 tvs had been broken or pulled off the wall. S and N didn't seem to know or care who did it or how it happened, (they seemed to find it amusing) which imo is worrying from 2 aspects a) tvs are pretty heavy and someone could have got injured b) there are no consequences for potentially breaking something that could hurt someone and would be expensive to replace

5, 6, 7, 8 are not at all similar to 22.

My friend was one of 12 and her dad married a women with 8 (both widows). They had a shit childhood. It was pretty bad before but worse when you were just one of 21 (they also had a baby together!)

As mentioned by other posters, check out the Tattle thread on them!

A bit of a deep dive on them and you’ll see the reality behind their shows and social media.
And the very dodgy start to their relationship.
It’s grim.

I'm one of 4, and I agree with you. But 22 is significantly more in terms of time, resources, emotional demand etc.

Apparently the bakery business supports the family. So that what Mr Kipling looks like.🤣

I remember flicking through the channels once and caught a few minutes of this family

They'd met up with another family with too many kids and the other father said something about how he enjoyed the process of making the kids

The radford father-i saw the look of sheer joy as he agreed that that was the best part

His whole face and body lit up

It was revolting-he said it in such a creepy way-i can't explain it

Even dp commented on how creepy this father was and he wouldn't notice if his arse was on fire

It was like the kids are a by-product of him getting his end away and dumping the baby on her while he's at work

She was 13 when she fell pregnant with their first and 14 when she had him

At 13/14 I was obsessed with dewberry perfume,smash hits magazine and chesney hawkes,not having my first child

She's definitely 'stuck' at 14 and buying new shiny prams to push the dolly in and he's creepy

They've only had the last few babies for the money and 'likes'

Imagine knowing you where born only to be a cash cow for your family

I wonder how many other couples are trying to have an insanely large amount of kids so they can be famous too? It’s gross to me

Any “good” parent wouldn’t have that many children. You can’t possibly give each child enough time and attention and they will probably grow up resentful of having the parent their own siblings etc.

The carbon footprint of that family does my bloody head in. A brand new pram for every baby. They proudly said they refuse to do hand me down clothes/school uniforms for any of their kids because apparently the other kids will "expect it" and laugh at them for it. Instead they go to Primark and spend a bomb on fast fashion then proudly show it all off on camera.

Each kid gets about 30 brand new plastic toys on their birthday. I have one DC and she doesn't get anything like that much stuff! They are constantly flying around to Florida or Australia or the Maldives or wherever.

Don't even get me started on how sick it is that they film their children when they're ill or in pain in A&E, or crying beside the grave of the baby they lost, and post it all online.

They have no shame, the whole thing is just about farming the kids out for money.

They’re definitely not a “lovely family” and I will never understand why they’re paraded around in the media after he got her pregnant when she was just 13. I can’t stand the way people say “ooh it was different back then…” either. It was 1989, not 1889. I’m the same age as Noel, none of my 18yo male friends were sniffing round 13 yr old girls. It’s disgusting.

They have grandchildren by their eldest child who they never include in anything, who they don’t send presents to, who they never see and don’t take on holidays. But then their son doesn’t support his kids either, so what do you expect?

The older girls start having kids really young, then go cap in hand to the council because it’s overcrowded at home and Sue and Noel would rather pay out for multiple trips to Disney per year, than help the kids that have made them money.

It’s less than 2yrs since Milly was all over the internet slagging her parents off for favouring some grandchildren over the others. Then Sue came out saying Milly’s now husband had been knocking her about, and had assaulted Sue and some of the other girls which is why she’d not been included in a holiday. Fast forward 18mths, and she’s got Channel 5 paying for a big wedding pretending they’re all a big happy family. They made out Harley’s mother let them down at the last minute, by not coming, and she got loads of hate, when in reality she’d told them she wasn’t coming because she’s not well.

They used to admit they claimed benefits but there was another family with 10 or 11 children in the press, who got a right old bashing because both parents worked part time, claimed tax credits, and then went on holiday. It was after that they started being very quiet about it, and the “we don’t claim benefits line” was wheeled out at every opportunity.

Wonder what her pelvic floor is like 🥴

Utter nonsense. 13 year olds getting pregnant wasn’t normal or something that wasn’t discouraged 30 years ago. And we’d have mocked any 17 year old who dated a 13 year old!