Latest news with #Liverpool-born
Daily Record
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Atomic Kitten's Liz McClarnon opens up her about baby joy at 44 and IVF journey
Singer Liz McClarnon-Cho says that she is somewhat 'petrified' of what's to come but is 'loving life' as a mum-to-be. The journey to being a mum-to-be has not been easy to Atomic Kitten's Liz McClarnon-Cho. After battling through two miscarriages and IVF, the singer now says she couldn't be more grateful as she is set to have her first baby at age 44. However, while "loving life" as a mum-to-be, she has also admitted that she is somewhat "petrified" of what is to come and that her IVF journey pushed her to her limits. Earlier this month, the Liverpool-born singer announced her exciting pregnancy news in a sweet Instagram post. Since then, she has opened up about her fertility treatments, miscarriages and her "rock" of a husband. Speaking to the Mirror, she said: "I really didn't expect people to be interested. I just thought I should probably put it out there before someone else mentioned it. I'm still at that 'is it a baby bump or is it just a big tummy?' stage I think, but it was only a matter of time. "I wore a Baby On Board badge on the Tube the other day because I didn't want to be knocked, and I noticed someone really look at me... So I decided to just let people know what was happening, then I think it'd been seen by half a million people within a few hours. "I'm just here living my fabulous little life, I didn't think people would care. But I think IVF is something that a lot of people can relate to – maybe more than we realise." Now that she is in her second trimester and finally over the pregnancy morning sickness, Liz and her partner Peter Cho are determined not to be stuck in the past. The couple first connected over dating app Hinge mid-2021 lockdown, and decided to start their IVF journey quite early into the relationship. Liz explained that they both wanted to have children and were aware that as she was 40-years-old it could delay the natural process. Unfortunately, in 2022, the couple had three failed embryo transfers, which the singer admitted hit her hard. She recalls: "The first time we did it, I thought, 'This will be it.' But by my third cycle, it was obviously very different. When that one didn't work, I was really quite sick and I was in a dark hole. "I'd put on so much weight but I didn't want to tell anyone why, because I didn't want the IVF to become my identity, my whole personality. I was still doing shows and I'd see the comments online talking about me. "I remember one said, 'She's getting really thick,' and others were like, 'She's unrecognisable.' I tried to remember that those people didn't know what was happening, but it was hard. I just felt broken after the third time, so we took a break before the wedding." Liz also revealed that even with the ups and downs, the whole process made her appreciate that having a baby was a "miracle". She added: "There are so, so many things that need to happen correctly for someone to get pregnant, and for that to result in a healthy baby. "If you fall pregnant naturally maybe you're not as aware, but at times we would be waiting every single day for the phone call to say how many eggs had been retrieved, or how many embryos they had, or if the embryos were healthy, or growing, or to tell us if I was pregnant. Then when it doesn't work, you're just in shock." Sadly, towards the end of last year, the couple suffered two heartbreaking miscarriages following their first successful cycles. After this, Liz admitted that she was "done". However, being around family gave her the courage to keep going. She explained: "I said I was 'done' after the last one, and Peter was absolutely on board with that, he didn't say anything other than, 'This is your body and I'll support whatever you decide you want,' which was a huge thing for me. I felt so bad emotionally, it was really tough. "But then we spent Christmas at home in my tiny two-bedroom flat, and my mum and dad came down from Liverpool and we all squeezed in. That time actually helped me heal." Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. The Atomic Kitten star says she is "loving life" now that the lingering anxiety that followed her earlier pregnancies has disappeared. The next milestone for the couple is to find out if they are having a girl or a boy. However, as she gets further on into the pregnancy, Liz is aware of the impact that her age may have. She says that she is already taking aspirin as she is within the "high risk" category, and that she is being monitored for pre-eclampsia. When asked if she believes she will be back to full energy once the baby arrives, Liz responded: "Oh God no, my knees already hurt. Don't get me wrong, I'm so grateful, but I'm also petrified. But you know what? It's happened to women older than me before, and it'll happen again – so we'll just get on with it!"
Daily Mirror
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Liz McClarnon shares baby joy at 44 after 'dark times' on IVF journey
Liz McClarnon-Cho couldn't be more grateful to be expecting her first baby at 44 – but she's also the first to admit she's somewhat 'petrified' of what's to come. The Liverpool-born singer, who lives in London, tells how she's 'loving life' as a mum-to-be, but also explains why her IVF journey pushed her to her limits. The Atomic Kitten star announced the happy news on her social media earlier this month, and as she opens up about her fertility treatment, miscarriages, and her 'rock' of a husband, she reveals she's been stunned at the reaction to her news. 'I really didn't expect people to be interested,' she laughs. 'I just thought I should probably put it out there before someone else mentioned it. I'm still at that 'is it a baby bump or is it just a big tummy?' stage I think, but it was only a matter of time." 'I wore a Baby On Board badge on the Tube the other day because I didn't want to be knocked, and I noticed someone really look at me... So I decided to just let people know what was happening, then I think it'd been seen by half a million people within a few hours. I'm just here living my fabulous little life, I didn't think people would care. But I think IVF is something that a lot of people can relate to – maybe more than we realise.' Meanwhile, Liz and her doctor husband, Peter Cho, are well into the second trimester and now that the pregnancy sickness has worn off, she's determined to not dwell on the past. That said, she's decided to share her own experiences, the good and bad, in the hope it adds something to the IVF conversation in general. It's also a rare opportunity for Liz, with some gentle cajoling, to tell the world a little more about Peter, who she says has been nothing short of 'brilliant' since they first met online during the Covid pandemic. The couple first connected on dating app Hinge, mid-2021 lockdown – shortly after she was 'kicked off Bumble for impersonating a famous person'. 'Me!' she giggles. After a month of messages and FaceTimes they were finally allowed to meet in person in July 2021, and within another four months, Liz had moved down to London from Liverpool to move in with Peter. Fast forward another four months, and Peter surprised Liz with a shock proposal by the Pulteney Bridge in Bath, complete with fairy lights and gorgeously sparkling ring. 'I'd actually taken him away for his birthday, then he started leading me down some steps... it was really dark so I had no clue what was going on. Then I saw all the fairy lights and he asked me to marry him!' While she's had a number of high-profile relationships, Liz doesn't actually adopt a 'thank God I didn't settle before' attitude because, she says, that feels like 'peeing on someone else's chips, and I wouldn't do that'. She adds, 'I'm just really grateful for what we found, and I genuinely hate the cheesiness of it, but I just knew it was right. On the outside we seem so different, but we're actually the same.' Their IVF journey started quite early in their relationship because, Liz explains, they both knew they wanted children and were aware that her being 40 could delay the natural process. In 2022, the couple had three failed embryo transfers, which hit Liz hard. 'The first time we did it, I thought, 'This will be it,'' she recalls. 'But by my third cycle, it was obviously very different. When that one didn't work, I was really quite sick and I was in a dark hole. 'I'd put on so much weight but I didn't want to tell anyone why, because I didn't want the IVF to become my identity, my whole personality. I was still doing shows and I'd see the comments online talking about me. "I remember one said, 'She's getting really thick,' and others were like, 'She's unrecognisable.' I tried to remember that those people didn't know what was happening, but it was hard. I just felt broken after the third time, so we took a break before the wedding.' Liz explains that it was a conscious decision to be honest in her pregnancy announcement on Instagram about her 'dark times' and 'loss after so much hope'. 'The whole process made me truly appreciate that having a baby is a miracle,' she says. 'There are so, so many things that need to happen correctly for someone to get pregnant, and for that to result in a healthy baby. 'If you fall pregnant naturally maybe you're not as aware, but at times we would be waiting every single day for the phone call to say how many eggs had been retrieved, or how many embryos they had, or if the embryos were healthy, or growing, or to tell us if I was pregnant. Then when it doesn't work, you're just in shock.' Towards the end of last year, the couple suffered two heartbreaking miscarriages following their first successful cycles. 'I said I was 'done' after the last one, and Peter was absolutely on board with that, he didn't say anything other than, 'This is your body and I'll support whatever you decide you want,' which was a huge thing for me. I felt so bad emotionally, it was really tough. But then we spent Christmas at home in my tiny two-bedroom flat, and my mum and dad came down from Liverpool and we all squeezed in. That time actually helped me heal.' It's definitely the start of a new chapter for Liz, who still performs Kitten songs today, more than 20 years after shooting to fame alongside Kerry Katona, Natasha Hamilton and later, Jenny Frost. Liz is 'loving life' now that the anxiety that lingered because of her earlier pregnancies has dissipated. The next milestone, she says excitedly, is finding out if it's a boy or a girl. She has no preference, but wants to remove any uncertainty where she can. She's also aware of the potential impact of her age on her pregnancy and labour, and is already taking aspirin as she falls into the 'high risk' category. She is being monitored for pre-eclampsia, and will soon start taking regular blood-thinning injections. We suggest that once the baby is here, she'll be full of energy. 'Oh God no, my knees already hurt,' she laughs. 'Don't get me wrong, I'm so grateful, but I'm also petrified. But you know what? It's happened to women older than me before, and it'll happen again – so we'll just get on with it!'
Daily Mirror
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Liz McClarnon's baby joy at 44 after double miscarriage heartbreak
Atomic Kitten star Liz McClarnon-Cho opens up all about her baby news and shares the IVF story that took her from heartbreak to happiness Liz McClarnon-Cho couldn't be more grateful to be expecting her first baby at 44 – but she's also the first to admit she's somewhat 'petrified' of what's to come. The Liverpool-born singer, who lives in London, tells the Mirror how she's 'loving life' as a mum-to-be, but also explains why her IVF journey pushed her to her limits. The Atomic Kitten star announced the happy news on her social media earlier this month, and as she opens up about her fertility treatment, miscarriages, and her 'rock' of a husband, she reveals she's been stunned at the reaction to her news. 'I really didn't expect people to be interested,' she laughs. 'I just thought I should probably put it out there before someone else mentioned it. I'm still at that 'is it a baby bump or is it just a big tummy?' stage I think, but it was only a matter of time." 'I wore a Baby On Board badge on the Tube the other day because I didn't want to be knocked, and I noticed someone really look at me... So I decided to just let people know what was happening, then I think it'd been seen by half a million people within a few hours. I'm just here living my fabulous little life, I didn't think people would care. But I think IVF is something that a lot of people can relate to – maybe more than we realise.' Meanwhile, Liz and her doctor husband, Peter Cho, are well into the second trimester and now that the pregnancy sickness has worn off, she's determined to not dwell on the past. That said, she's decided to share her own experiences, the good and bad, in the hope it adds something to the IVF conversation in general. It's also a rare opportunity for Liz, with some gentle cajoling, to tell the world a little more about Peter, who she says has been nothing short of 'brilliant' since they first met online during the Covid pandemic. The couple first connected on dating app Hinge, mid-2021 lockdown – shortly after she was 'kicked off Bumble for impersonating a famous person'. 'Me!' she giggles. After a month of messages and FaceTimes they were finally allowed to meet in person in July 2021, and within another four months, Liz had moved down to London from Liverpool to move in with Peter. Fast forward another four months, and Peter surprised Liz with a shock proposal by the Pulteney Bridge in Bath, complete with fairy lights and gorgeously sparkling ring. 'I'd actually taken him away for his birthday, then he started leading me down some steps... it was really dark so I had no clue what was going on. Then I saw all the fairy lights and he asked me to marry him!' While she's had a number of high-profile relationships, Liz doesn't actually adopt a 'thank God I didn't settle before' attitude because, she says, that feels like 'peeing on someone else's chips, and I wouldn't do that'. She adds, 'I'm just really grateful for what we found, and I genuinely hate the cheesiness of it, but I just knew it was right. On the outside we seem so different, but we're actually the same.' Their IVF journey started quite early in their relationship because, Liz explains, they both knew they wanted children and were aware that her being 40 could delay the natural process. In 2022, the couple had three failed embryo transfers, which hit Liz hard. 'The first time we did it, I thought, 'This will be it,'' she recalls. 'But by my third cycle, it was obviously very different. When that one didn't work, I was really quite sick and I was in a dark hole. 'I'd put on so much weight but I didn't want to tell anyone why, because I didn't want the IVF to become my identity, my whole personality. I was still doing shows and I'd see the comments online talking about me. "I remember one said, 'She's getting really thick,' and others were like, 'She's unrecognisable.' I tried to remember that those people didn't know what was happening, but it was hard. I just felt broken after the third time, so we took a break before the wedding.' Liz explains that it was a conscious decision to be honest in her pregnancy announcement on Instagram about her 'dark times' and 'loss after so much hope'. 'The whole process made me truly appreciate that having a baby is a miracle,' she says. 'There are so, so many things that need to happen correctly for someone to get pregnant, and for that to result in a healthy baby. 'If you fall pregnant naturally maybe you're not as aware, but at times we would be waiting every single day for the phone call to say how many eggs had been retrieved, or how many embryos they had, or if the embryos were healthy, or growing, or to tell us if I was pregnant. Then when it doesn't work, you're just in shock.' Towards the end of last year, the couple suffered two heartbreaking miscarriages following their first successful cycles. 'I said I was 'done' after the last one, and Peter was absolutely on board with that, he didn't say anything other than, 'This is your body and I'll support whatever you decide you want,' which was a huge thing for me. I felt so bad emotionally, it was really tough. But then we spent Christmas at home in my tiny two-bedroom flat, and my mum and dad came down from Liverpool and we all squeezed in. That time actually helped me heal.' It's definitely the start of a new chapter for Liz, who still performs Kitten songs today, more than 20 years after shooting to fame alongside Kerry Katona, Natasha Hamilton and later, Jenny Frost. Liz is 'loving life' now that the anxiety that lingered because of her earlier pregnancies has dissipated. The next milestone, she says excitedly, is finding out if it's a boy or a girl. She has no preference, but wants to remove any uncertainty where she can. She's also aware of the potential impact of her age on her pregnancy and labour, and is already taking aspirin as she falls into the 'high risk' category. She is being monitored for pre-eclampsia, and will soon start taking regular blood-thinning injections. We suggest that once the baby is here, she'll be full of energy. 'Oh God no, my knees already hurt,' she laughs. 'Don't get me wrong, I'm so grateful, but I'm also petrified. But you know what? It's happened to women older than me before, and it'll happen again – so we'll just get on with it!'
The Herald Scotland
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Liam Naylor on turning down Bruce Springsteen to answer Scotland call
Liam Naylor took the good news/bad news approach when telling dad, Phil, that he was returning to the Scotland squad after a two-year absence. The downside was that his old man would need to find someone else to take his ticket for the Bruce Springsteen gig they were meant to be going to together at Anfield this week. That, however, was a small price to pay for the chance to reignite his international aspirations. 'It's good to be back,' said the Liverpool-born batter. 'I didn't know what to expect as all I knew was I was going to get a phone call but didn't know whether it was going to be, 'you're in' or 'you're not in'. 'Then I saw Steve Snell [Cricket Scotland's Head of Performance] calling me. And he just said, 'you've scored plenty of runs and bashed the door down and there are only so many times we can say no to you!' 'I thought I would surprise my dad with the news by telling him first of all that he was going to have to sell my ticket for Bruce Springsteen. And when he started to act all disappointed I told him why. And then at that point he was delighted for me. 'So, I'm buzzing to be back involved. I'll try see Springsteen another time. I'm much happier being around the lads and back in the squad.' Naylor's return for the forthcoming twin series against the Netherlands and Nepal – the first a 50-over mini-tournament at Forfarshire, the second a clutch of T20 matches at Clydesdale – has been long overdue. The former under-19 cap's full debut came against Namibia in Nepal at the start of 2023, the series in which Scotland clinched the previous edition of the Cricket World Cup League 2 tournament they are again deeply immersed in. That looked to be the start of things but instead the 23-year-old has had to be patient until the glut of runs he was chalking up for club side RH Corstorphine became too vast to ignore. 'It's probably not a surprise to me that it's been a while since my last cap,' he admits honestly. 'After the Nepal series in 2023 I moved to Watsonians and didn't really have the greatest of years. 'So last year and this year it was just about trying to get back scoring runs again with RHC, the Scotland A team and things like going down to play for MCC recently against Nepal. 'And it's going alright. Some of the lads were like, 'you surely can't start as well as you did last year'. And I probably haven't but I'm still pleased. It's just been about backing yourself and narrowing it down to make the game as simple as possible. If the ball is there to be hit, then try and hit it.' Nepal has featured regularly on Naylor's international journey so far and he is looking forward to more jousts with them in the weeks ahead. 'Nepal was a cool place and I'll always have good memories because I made my Scotland debut there,' he adds. 'It's definitely one of my favourite countries in the world and I would love to go back. They seem to have fans everywhere. At that MCC game there must have been 70 or so. They seem mad for cricket.' The same can't be said for much of Liverpool where, like Scotland, the sport tends to live in football's shadow. Naylor, though, was undeterred, especially with his local club based just down the road from where he was brought up. 'The reason I got into cricket was because my first club was Alder Sports Club which was a 30-second walk from my house,' he reveals. 'I'm pretty sure I just walked past it one Friday night when junior training was on and I was like, 'I want to do that'. 'I started going, loved it and started watching cricket on the telly. And ever since then, yeah, it's been cricket, cricket, cricket. Obviously it's not big in Liverpool when you're growing up. But at that time, I played every sport going and so I gave cricket a go, too. And cricket and football were the ones that stuck. 'It's probably like in Scotland – there are more people who are into cricket in Liverpool than you might think. They just don't always want to admit it!' Naylor's Scottish connection comes from mum, Marie, who hails from Campbeltown. 'I was there for Easter and try and get across as much as possible,' he adds. 'My friends in Edinburgh love going too just because there are a few golf courses ranked in the top 50 in the UK. I'm now a member of Machrihanish and the lads are always asking if I can get them on. 'But my mum was ecstatic when I got called up for Scotland. The funny thing is she can never watch me play. She'll sit there and look at the floor, whilst my dad does laps of the pitch! But they were buzzing when I got back in the squad.' His old man still jokingly blames Naylor for ending his own cricket career. 'As I came through and started playing senior cricket, my dad started playing with me on a Sunday and then he became the Sunday captain when I was about 16. 'I remember batting with him one time. He called him through for a quick single but fell and dislocated his shoulder. He hasn't played cricket since – and he's never let me forget about it!'
Wales Online
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Kylie Minogue and Richard E Grant send ‘love' to actress with stage 4 cancer
Kylie Minogue and Richard E Grant send 'love' to actress with stage 4 cancer The Liverpool-born actress, 64, known for her work on family films Happy Feet and Babe and their sequels, is "hopeful" that a new treatment will help her get through the illness (Image: Getty Images ) Kylie Minogue and Richard E Grant have sent "love" to Australian comedian Magda Szubanski, following her announcement that she has been diagnosed with stage 4 blood cancer. The Liverpool-born actress, 64, known for her work on family films Happy Feet and Babe and their sequels, is "hopeful" that a new treatment will help her get through the illness. The Melbourne resident posted on Instagram on Thursday, describing her stage four mantle cell lymphoma as a "rare and fast-moving blood cancer". Under the post, Australian singer and former Neighbours actress Minogue, who has previously spoken about going through breast cancer decades ago, wrote: "Sending all love" along with heart emojis. Grant, who co-starred with Szubanski in the film Kath & Kimderella and whose wife, Joan Washington, died from lung cancer, wrote: "We all love you soooooo much Mags." Jurassic Park star Sam Neill, who was diagnosed with a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2022, wrote to his Ride Like A Girl co-star saying: "Sending huge, healing love and hugs to you, dear Magda. "You are supported and held in all our hearts." Muriel's Wedding actress Toni Collette, and singer and TV host, Dannii Minogue, also sent their support. Collette said: "Sending huge, healing love and hugs to you, dear Magda. You are supported and held in all our hearts." Minogue wrote: "We will see you walking down the street – everyone will be waving to you and sending long distance." Along with the post, Szubanski appeared in a video saying she had shaved her head "in anticipation of it all falling out in a couple of weeks", which can be a common side effect of undergoing chemotherapy. "It's serious, but I've started one of the best treatments available (the Nordic protocol), and I'm lucky to be getting absolutely world-class care here in Melbourne," Szubanski also wrote. "I won't sugar-coat it: it's rough. But I'm hopeful. I'm being lovingly cared for by friends and family, my medical team is brilliant, and I've never felt more held by the people around me." According to Cancer Research UK, mantle cell lymphoma "develops when white blood cells called lymphocytes grow out of control" and about 600 people are diagnosed with it each year in the UK. The charity said that a common treatment is the chemoimmunotherapy combinations, known as the Nordic protocol, which sees the patient have drugs on certain days. Article continues below Szubanski received international acclaim for her role as the farmer's wife, Esme Hoggett, in the 1995 movie, Babe, which was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning one for visual effects. She played sports-loving Sharon Strzelecki in Australian sitcom Kath And Kim, which inspired an American remake with the same name, and has been in Neighbours, and Oscar-nominated 2024 animated film, Memoir Of A Snail. Szubanski, who voiced the role of penguin teacher Miss Viola in the animated films Happy Feet in 2006 and Happy Feet Two in 2011, moved to Melbourne with her family in 1966 from the UK.
