Helen Flanagan has revealed that her eldest daughter broke down in tears after she failed to get an emergency passport in time for their holiday. The 35-year-old actress, known for playing Rosie Webster on Coronation Street, is mother to Matilda, 11, Delilah, eight, and five-year-old Charlie with ex-fiancé Scott Sinclair.
Passport troubles
Last year, the former I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! contestant took Matilda to Lake Como in Italy for some mother-daughter time, and they were excited to go again. However, Helen realised Matilda's passport needed renewing before the flight. On Tuesday, she took to Instagram to share her disappointment, saying: "So I went down to Scotland, I fly to Lake Como on Thursday, to try to get Matilda an emergency passport and we've not been able to get one."
In the emotional video, she told her daughter: "I just thought I'd try it because it says a week, but you never know. Mummy tried her best, didn't she? Mummy has tried. Love you." In the caption, she added: "My little girls cried on my shoulder, she was so looking forward to our trip."
Passport rules
Adults can use the Passport Office's one-day premium service to get a replacement passport, subject to appointment availability, and can collect it within hours. But this service is not available for new passports or for children under 16. The fastest option for a child's new or replacement passport is the one-week fast track, which requires an appointment at a passport office and depends on availability.
Other concerns
Earlier this week, Helen revealed she had taken her daughter to the doctors about skin discolouration that appeared in the sun. She said: "So it's back to everything being manic, even though I'm really stressed with the kids, I'm so much better because I don't have time to think when I'm with the kids because all I get is 'Mum, mum, mum!' I don't have time to think about myself because I'm so busy thinking about the kids. And I love that."
She added: "Also, my little girl has basically...it's not permanent, apparently it goes, but she's had...in the sun basically there's more discoloration in her skin. I took her to the doctors, I don't know the correct name of it, but it is something that actually goes. But she's getting more self-conscious of it and I wondered if anyone could recommend a good foundation."
Future hopes
The TV star recently said she hoped her next relationship would be with the man she would marry. On Lewis Nicholls' Life Stories podcast, she said: "I think it will be the real thing. I will choose to protect it and I will keep that private. I will probably say who that person is, but I will want to protect it. I will want to keep it private."
She continued: "I'll want to keep it really special, because I kind of feel like everybody's always got something to say. My next relationship I have I think will be my husband, because I won't be wasting my time, really. I will want to choose to protect it, definitely."
