17 November 2023 , 22:14
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Alex Scott, the former footballer and TV presenter, was moved to tears during a touching moment on Children In Need.
She co-hosted the show with Chris Ramsey and was deeply affected by the story of Shay, an 11 year old boy with Tourettes Syndrome. Shay's story began when he was five years old and started developing "weird habits that would just go away" that his parents thought would disappear.
However, one morning, Shay woke up unable to stop shaking his head. The viewers were shown a pre-recorded video of Shay struggling with tics, a symptom of his neurological disorder. Shay also has to be cautious of 'tic attacks', which he describes as "like a volcano, where all my tics can come out at one time and cause seizures."
Alex Scott was moved to tears at one point during tonight's Children In Need broadcast (ITV)Ten months later, Shay was diagnosed with Tourettes Syndrome. Despite the challenges, Shay is now in a better place, thanks to the support from a charity funded by Children In Need. A worker from the charity shared: "Shay came in and you could tell he had this moment of 'Oh my God, I'm not on my own' moment. He just blossomed."
His dad confessed that he wanted to hide away because he was "petrified of what people were thinking. He was even different with us and it destroyed us." His mum said: "There's nothing worse than watching your child suffer and there's nothing you can do. This charity has given us back our son who we lost for a long time basically."
Alex Scott makes surprise appearance at the Grammys in slinky silver dress
When the camera returned to the studio, there wasn't a dry eye in sight, and presenter Alex was visibly moved. With eyes filled with tears, she struggled to deliver her next lines. Co-host Chris chuckled and said "That one got you didn't it?" Alex simply replied: "It got me," as she quickly wiped her tears and continued with the show.
Alex, looking stunning in a black velvet dress with a sparkling choker necklace, remained emotional throughout the segment but professionally composed herself before telling viewers at home how they can help children like Shay.
Elsewhere on Children In Need, the future Queen of England Kate Middleton made a surprise appearance as she delivered a pre-recorded video message to open the show on BBC One. However, the message from the mum-of-three didn't go down to well with everyone watching at home.
Kate, who briefly worked part-time as an accessories buyer with British retailer Jigsaw before Prince William popped the question - was branded "tone deaf" and "out of touch" by critics online tonight. One angry viewer tweeted: "I hope Kate Middleton is going to announce a 10 per cent cut in Royal funding from public taxes. Think how much that would raise for charity."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]