Noel Radford, 55, was devastated to discover that his stepfather Clive had cut him and his brother Ian out of his will, instead leaving Valerie's £500,000 home to the cleaner. The revelation is set to be shown in the new series of the Channel 5 show 22 Kids and Counting.
Clive, who was married to Noel's late mum Valerie, went against her wishes, preventing Noel and Ian from inheriting her share of the house.
Noel's emotional reaction
“What bothers me is, did he ever love my mum?” Noel says. “Those were my mum’s last wishes, that her bit of the house should come to me and Ian. And then, as soon as she died, he thought: ‘Well, that’s not happening. I’ve got better plans for that.’”
Sue, who has been married to Noel for 34 years, adds, “I think the thing that has been the most upsetting part of all of this is that Val didn’t get her final wishes. Her final wishes were totally disrespected by somebody that she thought loved her, which I think is really hurtful.”
Legal context and aftermath
As Valerie and Clive owned the house as joint tenants, Clive automatically inherited her half when she died. As a result, Noel and his brother were not entitled to their mum’s share of the house, despite her leaving it to them in her will.
Noel says he has “absolutely no idea” why his stepfather disinherited him and his brother and gifted the estate to the cleaner. He wrote a letter to the cleaner but received a response from her solicitor warning that the police would be called if he contacted her again.
Impact on the family
Noel says the cleaner inherited the house, all of the cash his stepfather had in the bank, his stocks and shares, ISA account and coin collection, an estate he claims was worth around £500,000 to £600,000.
The new series will also focus on Sue's three-stone weight loss, achieved through healthy eating and exercise, which she embarked on after turning 50. “That was definitely a turning point for me,” she says. “I got to a point where I didn’t even want to have pictures taken with the kids because I just didn’t like looking at them. I had to do something about it. You want to be around for your kids as long as you possibly can, be as healthy as you can be for them. Doing it has been really good for the family as well because we eat more healthily.”
Sue admits to feeling much more confident with her new slimline figure. “I feel much happier in myself,” she says. “I’m so glad that I stuck with it. It’s definitely hard work, but if it’s something you want to do, you have to change your eating habits, which takes a lot of willpower.”
Noel says, “I’m really proud of her. It’s been hard work for her, especially at the beginning.”
22 Kids and Counting is on 5 Sunday nights at 8pm.
