Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Zara Woodcock

Kerry Katona fights back tears as she recalls lying to her mum about abusive marriage

An emotional Kerry Katona fought back tears as she spoke out about her abusive marriage to her late ex-husband George Kay.

The former Atomic Kitten singer appeared on Loose Women on Tuesday and revealed she lied to her mother, Sue, about the reality of her relationship.

Kerry, 42, said she feels ashamed for staying with George for so long and regrets the fact her children knew about the abuse.

She shared Molly, 21, and Lilly-Sue, 19, with ex Brian McFadden, son Maxwell, 14, with ex Mark Croft and daughter Dylan-Jorge, eight, with George.

The star tied the knot with George, her third husband, in September 2014. They divorced in 2017.

In July 2019, tragedy struck when George collapsed and died after a drug overdose.

Speaking to the panellists, Kerry said: "It's not about blame. It's a fear. It's so difficult, my mum said she was waiting on the police to knock on the door and say he had killed me.

Kerry was married to ex-husband George until 2019, when he died (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
She used to lie about the bruises on her body to her mum (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

"I have George's little girl, I remember he was covering up my bruises and I told my mum it was from rough sex. She looked at George and he knew that she knew.

She went on to explain how her eldest daughter, Molly, once gave her a look that made her become concerned about what she was teaching her children by staying with George.

Kerry said: "Molly gave me a look of pure weakness once and I thought what am I teaching my kids.

"There's such a shame I held on for so long, I know my kids are messed up because of it.

"Lilly and Molly can go to Brian and its the same with Mark, whenever they want, but DJ hasn't got that choice."

The former couple had daughter, Dylan-Jorge (REX/Shutterstock)
She previously said she would be 'dead' if he was still alive (Getty Images)
Kerry pictured with her mother Sue, one year after her divorce (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Get all the biggest showbiz news straight into your inbox. Sign up for the free Mirror Showbiz newsletter.

Kerry previously confessed she would be 'dead' if he was still alive today.

She used to send pictures of her 'bruised and battered body' to both her mum and manager so they knew if anything happened to her, it was at the hands of George.

Kerry eventually took out a restraining order on George in order to protect her family from her abusive ex and while it wasn't a decision she took lightly, she has no regrets - with her worst fears confirmed following George's death in 2019.

Kerry previously said she is 'angry' her daughter, DJ, has been left without a father (kerrykatona7/Instagram)

"He had threatened to rape my mum and slash her up in front of me.

"So I didn’t know what he was going to do next. I was terrified he was going to hurt her or DJ," Kerry said when recalling a threatening FaceTime with George before his death.

Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at webcelebs@mirror.co.uk or call us direct at 0207 29 33033.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.