26 February 2024 , 10:57
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Like every family, the Radfords have their squabbles - but some rifts cut deeper than others.
Sue Radford, the matriarch of Britain's biggest family, is a mum of 22 and grandma of 10 and adores being surrounded by kids. But it can be hard juggling them all and the 48-year-old was criticised for not treating them equally last year. Reports of a feud between Sue and her daughter Millie, 22, made headlines after a public rant.
Millie slammed her parents Sue and Noel, 53, on Instagram for making money from their grandchildren and choosing favourites to take on holiday. The mum-of-three, who was pregnant at the time, accused them of excluding her two kids, Ophelia Jo and Chester Bleu, from a family trip to Florida. In a new interview, Sue addressed the alleged row.
Millie accused her mum of making money out of the family and claimed she had favourites (millieradfordd/Instagram)
Sue and Millie's public argument is now 'water under the bridge', the mum-of-22 has said (@theradfordfamily/instagram)Speaking ahead of her book release this week, Sue dismissed the fall-out with Millie and said it was "water under the bridge". Back in April 2023, Millie shared a screenshot of a video of her parents surprising some of their grandchildren with a trip on Instagram before reposting it with the sharp caption: "Cute? But you've made money from all your grandchildren but choose your favourites."
Millie went on to accuse Sue and Noel of snubbing Ophelia and Chester despite the fact they were regularly featured in "the whole of 22 Kids and Counting." She later deleted the post. Sue then shared a cryptic message in a comment on their Facebook video that said: "Thank you so much for all your comments the grandkids' reaction was just so lovely and had us all crying [heart emoji] please could we just not comment on Millie we are on holiday and don't want all the drama."
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The pair never addressed the accusations explicitly or revealed how their relationship had healed. But in September, Sue was by Millie's side as she welcomed her third child, Elodie-Jade, into the world. And now, the pair seem to be back to normal as Sue has confirmed it's all in the past. In her interview with OK!, she also addressed her family's finances and how they afford to go on holidays.
She said: "People just jump to conclusions. We don't claim benefits - the pie company is very successful and so is our media business. We work hard but we're not millionaires! The nastiness is upsetting though. We just want to be able to give our children the best possible life."
As well as a thriving bakery business - and their TV show 22 Kids & Counting now in its fourth series - the couple steer a suite of successful social media channels, from TikTok to Insta, Facebook and YouTube. "We're proud to be Britain’s biggest family but we'd only planned on having about three," Sue revealed.
She added: "We're addicted to children – but as addictions go, it's not a bad one because it's motivated by love. We have plenty to go round." They share Chris, 34, Sophie, 29, Chloe, 28, Jack, 26, Daniel, 24, Luke, 22, Millie, 22, Katie, 20, James, 19, Ellie, 18, Aimee, 17, Josh, 16, Max, 14, Tillie, 13, Oscar, 11, Casper, 10, Hallie, eight, Phoebe, seven, Archie, six, Bonnie, four, and Heidie, three. They also lost a son, Alfie, who was stillborn in 2014.
- The Radfords: Making Life Count is published by Mirror Books and will be available from all good bookshops and Amazon on Thursday, February 29.