The age Sue Radford fell pregnant with her first baby has become a topic of hot discussion on social media following husband’s Noel’s comments in the latest episode of their series 22 Kids and Counting.
The show went out on Channel 5 on Sunday (January 14) and saw Sue and Noel shopping for a new home. This came amid safety fears after fans of the family started turning up at the family’s home.
While viewing their new five-bedroom farmhouse, Sue and Noel explained that not all of their children would be moving into the home with them. And Noel then said that he moved out when he was 18. This is the age that he was when Sue fell pregnant.
Sue, however, was aged just 13.
Sue Radford fell pregnant at age of 13
Mother of the massive brood Sue is currently 48 years old. She was born on March 22 1975. Sue’s first baby Chris was born on May 7 1989. Sue was 14 at the time. However, Sue would have celebrated her 14th birthday when she was pregnant. This means that she was aged just 13 when she fell pregnant with Chris in the late summer of 1988.
Noel, meanwhile, is currently 53 years old. He was born on December 24 1970. When Chris was conceived, he would’ve been a few months shy of his 18th birthday.
Was that because he had/was expecting a child with his 13/14 year old partner?
At the time, and currently, the age of consent in the UK is 16. Sue was below the age of consent, while Noel was above it. And it’s this – brought on by Noel’s comments about the age he was when he moved out of his family home – that have sparked backlash on social media.
Sue and Noel were both adopted as babies and met when Sue was aged just seven while they were at school. They started dating when they were teenagers. They married in September 1992 and last year celebrated their 31st wedding anniversary.
Sue gave birth to their 22nd child – daughter Heidie – in April 2020. And she has said that she won’t be having any more.
However, fans of the series are now super-focussed on Noel’s behaviour while Sue was under the age of consent.
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Viewers react as 22 Kids and Counting husband Noel faces backlash
As Sue told Noel “I want that house” while visiting the farmhouse, one viewer commented: “He should be in a big house, at His Majesty’s Pleasure, not looking at houses.”
A second added: “Noel just said when he was 18 he had left home. He also forgot to add that he was [bleep]ing 13 year olds and getting them pregnant.”
A third commented: “‘When I was 18 I left home.’ Was that because he had/was expecting a child with his 13/14 year old partner?”
Another also highlighted the potential legal implications of Noel’s actions. “Noel Radford is lucky that he did not have to sign a certain register when he was younger,” they said.
ED! has contacted reps for Sue and Noel for comment.
22 Kids and Counting continues this Sunday (January 21) at 8pm on Channel 5.
Read more: Here’s how much the Radford family from 22 Kids and Counting are actually worth
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