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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Connie Rusk

Alex Scott 'angry and hurt' by dad denying her claims of domestic abuse in her childhood

Alex Scott has said she feels "angry and hurt" by her father denying her claims he "bullied and abused" her during her childhood.

The former footballer, 37, spoke out on her dad's Tony's interview earlier this week where he shut down her allegations, insisting he was strict throughout her childhood - but never violent.

In her new memoir How (Not) to Be Strong, Alex called her father a 'controlling and violent' who was 'stupidly cruel'.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4, Alex said her father disputing her claims has "lit a new fire within me" after a phone call with her mother Carol McKee, whom, she alleges, was a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of her father.

"That story from him coming out yesterday takes her back to a place," she said.

"Hearing the pain and the terror again in her voice last night - that's why I don't know what I can do. But I'm not going to allow him to win no more.

Alex Scott has said she feels "angry and hurt" by her father denying her claims he "bullied and abused" her (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Alex pictured with her mum Carol (Instagram)

"This book, the reason was to get some peace. And I suppose when you are in peace it gives you a new position of power and that's maybe why he's trying to (respond) right now."

In her autobiography, Alex alleged she heard her father being violent towards her mother while she and her brother were in bed in their flat in east London.

She wrote: "All I could do was lie there and pray my mum would be alive in the morning."

Alex told Radio 4's Emma Barnett on Tuesday: "(My mum) doesn’t know that her two kids are in the room hearing everything.

"She’s trying to be strong in a totally different way, we’re trying to be strong for her but can’t help her. The visuals are still so there. I couldn’t do anything.

Alex's dad Tony vehemently denied the allegations he was abusive to his family (Instagram)

"It’s all still so raw. I can visualise it like it was yesterday. Even when my dad left that environment, we never communicated or you don’t speak about it. That pain and the struggles still continue."

It comes after 63-year-old Tony vehemently denied the allegations and said he could not understand why Alex would portray him in such a bad light.

"I have no idea why she's saying all this stuff. I was raised in a strict but loving Jamaican family and Alex should know what they are like. I taught her discipline, I did a lot to help her," he emotionally told MailOnline earlier this week.

"Perhaps she is judging me by today's standards, I don't know. Parents were a lot tougher back then. But I was never violent, that's just not me. I never beat Alex or anyone else in the family or did anything like that," he added.

Alex speaks about her tough childhood in her new memoir (Instagram)
Alex says she finds it hard reliving her childhood as she promotes her book (Getty Images)

Tony also said he only meant well, and wanted to instil discipline in Alex and her brother, which he maintained has helped her in her career incredibly successful career so far.

But Alex hit back as she said: "I actually don't care what happened to me. If you are saying being beaten with a belt is just being strict, I can take that. I really don't care about me.

"What I do care is about my mum and the fear and terror that she had to live in and the fact I was never able to help her in that, but what I can do is help her now by speaking the truth. And everything I wrote in that book, I stand by it. It is the truth."

The BBC star previously spoke about why she decided to write about her childhood in her book during an appearance on This Morning.

She told Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield: "You know what, the hard thing as well is I didn't do it, I didn't write that part to shame my dad. I wanted my mum to be free.

"She still thinks she's a coward, and she's anything but, she is an incredible woman."

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