Latest news with #ShouldIHaveChildren?
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Ellie Simmonds sobs over birth mother's confession leaving viewers 'broken'
ITV viewers have been left "heart-broken" after watching an emotional conversation unfold between Ellie Simmonds and her birth mother on television. The award-winning Paralympian aired her documentary Should I Have Children? tonight. In it she explores what the chances are that if she got pregnant her baby would also have the genes for dwarfism, and tries to work out whether that is a risk she is willing to take. While figuring out what her own journey towards motherhood would look like, Simmonds decides to contact her biological mum and ask why she ultimately decided to give Ellie up for adoption. Viewers were moved by the heart-wrenching conversation, which brought Ellie herself to tears. Her mum, whose identity has been protected by the athlete, told her: "We went to a geneticist and she was very abrupt. Said 'There you go, that's what your baby is going to look like.' I remember coming back thinking, I can't cope with this."
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Ellie Simmonds has heartbreaking call with birth mum in an ITV doc tonight
In a new ITV documentary, the swimming champion explores societal views of having children with a disability - and whether she should have kids herself In a deeply personal journey on Ellie Simmonds: Should I Have Children?, on ITV1 tonight at 9pm, the former Paralympian swimmer explores the controversial views of having children with a disability - and whether she herself should have kids. Ellie was given up for adoption by her birth mother when she found out that Ellie had dwarfism, so it's a hugely confronting subject. In the documentary, she speaks to parents who have faced these fraught decisions, and asks, What would she do? Ellie says: 'Being a 30-year-old woman, this is the time people think about starting a family. It's different because I'm living with a disability every single day so I know what it's like to be a disabled person. If you find out you've got a disabled baby, do people think they can't actually cope with it? 'Are they nervous? Do they want a picture-perfect baby?' Meeting with doctors and geneticists, counsellors and expectant families facing life-changing decisions, Ellie asks big questions around prenatal testing and societal perceptions of disability. She meets Rosie and Lloyd, who discovered that their son Arlo had dwarfism at a 28 week scan. Rosie says: 'I didn't know what dwarfism was. It was one of the hardest times of my life, I was so scared. As soon as he was Earth-side, it was totally eradicated.' The documentary ends with a moving phone call between Ellie and her birth mum, who admits: 'I remember thinking I can't cope. All I could see was your disability. The guilt is horrendous. You're a completely perfect person in every way. I think it was cowardly.' *Ellie Simmonds: Should I Have Children is on ITV1 tonight (Tuesday 27 May) at 9pm There's plenty more on TV tonight - here's the best of the rest.. BAKE OFF: THE PROFESSIONALS, CHANNEL 4, 8pm The posh, upper crust cousin of Bake Off, this is the grown-up version that produces spectacular souffles instead of soggy bottoms. It's the contest that sees professionals fight to make the best foam or fondant with ever-incredible desserts. Ellie Taylor and Liam Charles welcome pastry chefs hailing from hotels, restaurants, patisserie shops and small ventures from around the UK, as they face testing challenges set by world-class top pâtissier experts, Benoit Blin and Cherish Finden. First the chefs face a secret challenge but unlike any ever set before. Without a proper recipe to hand, they need to rely on pastry instinct, innate knowledge and teamwork to create one of Cherish's very own creations, the Apple Tin. For their second challenge, they must become masters of illusion with a food-and-drink-inspired showpiece with a hidden Victoria sandwich elevated to new heights. Expect towering creations, the occasional breakage and several raised eyebrows from the harsh judges. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? BBC1, 9pm It shouldn't come as a surprise that TV's top cupid has a war-time romance in his history. Matchmaking maitre d' and presenter Fred Sirieix returns to France to explore his family roots where he discovers an epic love story and ancestors who survived against the odds. He says: 'There are so many things that I don't know and I realise all those conversations I missed when I was a young boy. I didn't think to ask my grandparents about where we came from and what happened.' In particular, Fred's mother's side is a mystery. The family story is that his maternal grandparents met during World War Two, when Fred's grandfather Rene was taken as a prisoner of war in Burgundy and Genevieve, his grandmother, was living in the area. The tale goes that Rene escaped and fled from Nazi-occupied France to Free France, where Genevieve later joined him. Intrigued by this love story, Fred returns to France to see what he can find out. EMMERDALE, ITV1, 7.30pm John is still having nightmares as he envisions the new threat of Aidan interrupting his wedding. Sarah heads alone to get her biopsy results. Her fears are confirmed when the consultant reveals she has the early stages of cervical cancer. Joe realises he and Clemmie have a lot of work to do to improve their relationship. Mack struggles to steal the stash as it's just too big. Lewis gets a phone alert that there is an intruder in his attic. EASTENDERS, BBC1, 7.30pm Nicola tries to deny Zack's paternity but is forced to come clean when Teddy continues to press her on the facts. A painful confrontation unfolds as Teddy demands answers, but he and Nicola are shaken when Harry reveals Zack's plan to leave with Barney. Harry takes drastic measures to stop Zack and bundles him into his car boot before speeding out of Walford. Barney comforts Avani over the abusive messages. Nicola finds them and assumes Avani is leading Barney astray.
Wales Online
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Strictly's Ellie Simmonds told 'all I could see was your disability' in heartbreaking call
Strictly's Ellie Simmonds told 'all I could see was your disability' in heartbreaking call In a new ITV documentary, Ellie Simmonds: Should I Have Children?, the former Paralympian swimming champion has a tear-jerking phone call with her birth mum Ellie has a new ITV documentary out next week (Image: undefined via Getty Images ) Strictly Come Dancing star Ellie Simmonds' biological mother has candidly revealed the heart-wrenching reason for giving her up, confessing in a raw telephone conversation: "All I could see is your disability". In a poignant segment set to be broadcast in an ITV documentary on Tuesday, the ex-Paralympic swimming star bravely contacts her birth mum, leading to a profoundly moving exchange. At just ten days old, Ellie, now 30, was relinquished for adoption by her birth mother upon learning of Ellie's achondroplasia, a genetic condition causing dwarfism. Ellie recounts how her birth mum was bluntly presented with a fact sheet by a medical professional, suggesting that children like her were often thought to have lower intelligence and typically ended up working in circuses. The pair re-established contact two years prior while Ellie was working on the documentary Finding My Secret Family, yet it took until now for Ellie to feel prepared to discuss her adoption with her mother. In her latest intimate documentary, Ellie Simmonds: Should I Have Children?, she delves into societal attitudes towards parenting children with disabilities and contemplates her own potential motherhood, reports the Mirror. Article continues below Gathering the strength to place the call, Ellie expresses: "I want to know what it was like for her to decide to put me up for adoption. For her it was 30 years ago, but it's quite a sensitive, super emotional situation." Ellie is an award-winning ex-Paralympic swimmer (Image: AFP via Getty Images ) Peter Andre shocked by backlash over film where he poses as Jamaican gangster READ MORE: Her birth mother, choosing to remain nameless on screen, shared her emotions: "It's really quite traumatic. It's hard for you to hear. I don't want to in any way upset you. You're making a decision at the wrong time of your life, because you've just given birth, your hormones are all over the place. You're physically not right, you're mentally not right." Discussing the difficult circumstances she faced in the past, she said: "There was a lot in the background going on. I kept the pregnancy a secret, I gave birth on my own. I went to a geneticist and she was very abrupt. She said, 'There you go, that's what your baby is going to look like'. I remember thinking I can't cope with this. Maybe I wanted a magic wand." She went on to describe the immense struggles she endured: "All I could see was your disability. You can make excuses, but I really did struggle. "I grieved the child that I thought you should have been. It was the biggest decision of my life. To give your biological child away... it was momentous. I just handed you over and that's something you really can never get over. The guilt is horrendous. You live with it all the time." Acknowledging her constant thoughts about her child, she added: "I didn't ever forget you. I thought about you every day. When I saw you at the Beijing Paralympics, I thought 'That's my Ellie'. I've been a number one fan. "I've watched everything you've done, I'm extremely proud. It's an amazing thing to have a child, there's no love like it. Fast forward 30 years and I realise what a fabulous woman you are. It's just that you were a bit shorter. You're a completely perfect person in every way." Ellie listens, visibly distraught and mostly silent, as her birth mother speaks to her. Eventually, she finds the words to reassure her: "We don't want to blame anyone, decisions are decisions. You're amazing". Ellie was left upset by the conversation she had with her biological mother (Image: ITV GRAB ) However, her birth mother candidly responds: "I don't know Ellie, I think sometimes it was quite cowardly to be honest." Reflecting on their conversation, Ellie remarks: "It seems that she held that guilt for a long time. That's really sad. We put a lot of pressure on the mum in society. It's amazing that she's so honest and open. I think people's fear of a disability is actually a fear of what's inside of them." In the documentary, Ellie engages with medical professionals, geneticists, and counsellors, and also speaks with parents who have faced challenging decisions after discovering their unborn child has a disability. She poses the question, what would she do in such a situation? Ellie ponders: "Being a 30-year-old woman, this is the time people think about starting a family. But my situation is different because I live with a disability, so I understand what it's like to be a disabled person. "When people find out they're having a disabled baby, do they worry that they won't be able to cope? Are they nervous? Do they want a picture-perfect baby?" Article continues below In the course of her journey, Ellie uncovers a harrowing fact related to her own potential future pregnancies: should she conceive with a partner who also has dwarfism, their child would have a one in four chance of inheriting a lethal 'double dose' of the condition. Ellie takes this revelation to heart, stating: "No parent should have to go through that. While I'm not at the stage of wanting a baby just yet, it's something I will have to consider." *Ellie Simmonds: Should I Have Children? is on Tuesday 27 May on ITV1 at 9pm.
