Gogglebox star Shaun Ryder explains sad reason he still 'works hard' for money

22 December 2023 , 15:07

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Shaun Ryder suffers from ADHD - as do five of his six children

Celebrity Gogglebox star Shaun Ryder has opened up on his heartbreak at having to still "work hard and make money" at the age of 61.

Shaun rose to fame in the late 1980s as the lead singer of Happy Mondays, releasing a string of hits including Step On and Kinky Afro. Despite the band's success and other endeavours including his own UFO show on the History Channel and an appearance on I'm A Celebrity that saw him finish runner-up, Shaun still has to dig deep to support his six children.

Previously, the singer revealed two of his daughters had been diagnosed with ADHD, prompting him to undergo an assessment for the condition himself in his fifties. After learning he does indeed suffer from the disorder, three more of his children were later diagnosed too.

Shaun finished runner-up to Stacey Solomon in I'm A Celebrity, before appearing in the All Stars edition earlier this year (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Shaun, who is dad to Jael, Coco, Pearl, Lulu, Joseph, Oliver via four different women, told the Sun: "So I have six kids and five of them have it. That's why I'm always working, because I've got to pay for their f***ing therapy. One of my girls is a Maths genius - there's traces of autism in ADHD. Not everyone's got traces of autism in the ADHD, not everyone has a bad memory."

Shaun went on to add that the condition has led to difficulties in performing due to the effect it has on his behaviour, particularly impulsivity. "No ADHD is the same," he added. "It's always affecting my memory. Even though I wasn't diagnosed until 50 odd years old, when I was at school while I was in the class I would take things and understand it, by the time the lesson had ended and I walked out that door I couldn't remember anything. I just didn't retain the information. And also the ADHD, with me, led to promiscuous behaviour, drugs, trouble."

Gogglebox star shows off three stone weight loss in impressive year apart snaps

Shaun, who is now performing under the guise of Mantra of the Cosmos with best pal Bez and former Oasis stars Andy Bell and Zak Starkey, says his wild days are thankfully now well behind him. He explained that when he's at home there is no alcohol in the house, which also benefits his five children with ADHD. "We've still got teenagers in the house so we don't want alcohol in the house with teenage girls, especially with ADHD," he added.

Last month Shaun's son Joe was left mortified after making an embarrassing blunder on First Dates. In a clip he later shared to Instagram, Joe said: "I'm doing the name drop. Have you heard of a band called The Happy Mondays?" to which his date shook his head. "So my biological dad is Shaun Ryder, who is the lead singer of The Happy Mondays. I don't know if you know him from I'm A Celeb years ago... Came second?" But alas, his date still looked completely clueless.

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Alan Johnson