The life of Irish Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick

The life of Irish Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick - from his difficult childhood in Laois to Royal wedding invite

One of the guests set to make an appearance on Friday's RTE Late Late Show will be Supervet star Noel Fitzpatrick.

Noel, 54, is a veterinary surgeon who is a recognisable face to animal lovers everywhere following his long-running Channel 4 television programme The Supervet, which is now in its 17th series.

He will join Ryan Tubridy for a chat on his life and times as his new book Beyond Supervet: How Animals Make Us the Best We Can Be is published this week.

Here's all we know about The Supervet's Irish upbringing in County Laois, his personal life and how he scored an invite to a royal wedding, according to RSVP.

Growing up in Laois

Noel is originally from a farm in Ballyfin, in County Laois. In his upcoming memoir he opens up about deeply personal topics including how he was sexually abused by a male farmhand on his family's farm between the ages of five and 10.

Noel recently told The Times that he hadn't spoken publicly about the abuse until now as he was protecting his mother's feelings.

Both his parents have now passed away. His mother Rita died in February, aged 92, and his father, who was a farmer, died in 2008.

Noel Fitzpatrick and his mother Rita who passed away in February (Noel Fitzpatrick)

Noel also reveals more about his difficult childhood in the book, revealing how he was bullied and beaten up at secondary school and said his only friend was Pirate, the farm dog.

Noel moved to the UK almost 30 years ago in 1993 after graduating from University College, Dublin with a degree in Veterinary Medicine. He is now director and managing clinician of Fitzpatrick Referrals in Eashing, Surrey, which he opened in 2005.

Royal wedding invite

Noel has had a number of celebrity clients, and in 2017 he was even called upon to treat the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle's dog Guy, after he broke two of his legs.

His tireless work in helping the pet beagle recover scored him an invite to Meghan's 2018 royal wedding to Prince Harry.

However, he told the Irish Daily Mail that while he was "honoured" to be invited, he ended up leaving the celebrations in Windsor Castle early as he was struck with imposter syndrome and began asking himself "What is a farmer’s son doing here?"

Prince Harry and Meghan wave to the crowds at their royal wedding in May 2018 (Getty Images)

Personal life

Noel's commitment to his veterinary work means he has never married and has no children. However, Noel has previously shared that he has a girlfriend but didn't divulge any more details.

Last year, the vet revealed on BBC's Desert Island Discs that he had began thinking about the possibility of having children, and that at the age of 53, he feels it's time to start thinking about those big questions.

Noel's commitment to his veterinary practice means he has never married (Channel 4)

Noel revealed in 2020 that he fell head first down the stairs and broke his neck, an incident which made him question a lot of aspects of his personal life.

He has also admitted to experiencing suicidal thoughts a number of years ago, after he was accused of malpractice. Fitzpatrick said he had been supported during that time by his girlfriend, their dog and cats.

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