Kerry Katona and children – family facts

Lilly-Sue McFadden, born February 3, 2003

Heidi Elizabeth Croft, born February 20, 2007

Maxwell Mark Croft, born April 11, 2008

Dylan-Jorge Rose, born April 4, 2014

Fathers’ birth dates

Brian McFadden, father to Molly Marie McFadden and Lilly-Sue McFadden, born April 12, 1980

Mark Croft, father to Heidi Elizabeth Croft and Maxwell Mark Croft

George Kay, father to Dylan-Jorge Rose

Rise to fame

Kerry Katona was just 18 when she shot to fame as part of girl band Atomic Kitten. On the Smash Hits road show in August 1999, Kerry met the blonde-haired blue-eyed Bryan McFadden, from boy band Westlife. Just 2 weeks after meeting the couple started dating and Brian was so into Kerry that a month later he proposed.

Soon after, Kerry became pregnant with her and Bryan’s first child. She’d already recorded her parts for Atomic Kitten’s biggest hit Whole Again but left the band days before its release. Kerry was replaced by Jenny Frost and the re-recorded single went on to be number 1 in the UK chart for 4 consecutive weeks.

Becoming a mum

Kerry gave birth to her first daughter, Molly Marie in Mount Carmel Hospital, Dublin on 31 August 2001. Once their daughter was born, the couple wasted no time making plans for their wedding. But on Bryan’s stag do he cheated on Kerry with a lap dancer. “The day my marriage ended was on the stag night,” he has since told the Metro. “That was the time I felt ‘this is not supposed to be’.”

At the time Kerry insisted the scandal just made them stronger because they were “soul mates”. So despite Bryan’s discrepancy, the couple wed on 5 January 2002, at Slane Castle in Ireland. They then went on to have a second child, Lilly-Sue McFadden, born 3 February 2003.

A year later, in February 2004, Kerry was crowned Queen of the Jungle, winning the third series of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! Months later, she separated from Bryan in September 2004.

Marriage no 2

Kerry married taxi driver Mark Croft in a private ceremony in Gretna Green on 14 February 2007. Kerry gave birth to their first daughter Heidi Elizabeth Croft just 6 days later on 20 February. Heidi was 6 weeks premature, and delivered by caesarean section, weighing 5lb.

In a shocking turn of events, armed robbers held the family hostage during a raid on her £1.5 million home in Wilmslow, Cheshire on 17 July 2007.

Kerry and her 5-month-old baby were kept downstairs as 3 masked men, carrying sledgehammers and crowbars took Mark around the house to show them where valuables were kept.

Cheshire police said the gang escaped with goods worth £150,000 including a sports car, laptops and jewellery, according to the BBC.

That same month, Kerry reportedly refused demands to take a drugs test in the custody battle with her ex-husband Brian McFadden over their daughters Molly, then 6 and Lilly-Sue, then 4.

Kerry’s fourth pregnancy

Kerry announced in late September 2007 that she was expecting her fourth child – her second with Mark. After facing early complications, Kerry feared she’d miscarried the baby. “I've been bleeding a lot in the past few days and I've been petrified that I might be miscarrying but I've bled in all of my previous pregnancies so I'm praying everything is okay,” she told Ok! magazine at the time. But a hospital examination revealed the baby still had a heartbeat and she was only 5 weeks pregnant, not 7-8 weeks as she’d thought.

But the drama didn’t end there, and 5 weeks before the due date, Kerry went into labour. After a lengthy 2 days, she finally gave birth to a 5lb 4oz baby boy named Maxwell Mark Croft on 11 April 2008. The whole birth was filmed for her MTV documentary – Crazy in Love.

Bankruptcy drugs and divorce

In 2008, Kerry filed for bankruptcy due to an £86,000 unpaid tax bill. But despite her money troubles, Kerry maintained her celebrity lifestyle and continued to live in a £5,000 a week rented mansion in Surrey.

"Money's an issue for me,” she’s since told The Telegraph. “I'm really weird around money. I feel like I have to pay and bought my husband whatever he wanted: he had a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, an Aston Martin, a Porsche. He kept changing them but we always had a few cars at one time.”

In August 2009, Kerry was secretly filmed by the News of the World allegedly snorting cocaine at her Cheshire home. Following the front-page splash and subsequent media storm, Kerry was dumped from her £250,000-a-year deal as the face of the Iceland adverts, which was her main source of income.

Kerry and Mark separated in February 2010 after breaking up and reconciling a number of times. Their divorce became final in September 2011.

She later accused Mark of causing her depression – that contributed to her drug use and blowing her £6.8m fortune.

Kerry took part in Celebrity Big Brother in 2011 – and came second. The following year, she announced she’d rejoined Atomic Kitten, replacing Jenny Frost, for ITV2 series The Big Reunion. The show aired in 2013 and was followed by a full arena tour of the UK.

A fresh start

Ex-rugby league player George Kay was working as Kerry’s bodyguard when they started dating in late 2012.

"He makes me feel so good about myself: 'Morning beautiful! You're stunning, you're amazing, you're strong, go and exercise', you know," she said at the time.

After just 9 months together, George got down on one knee at the top of Blackpool Tower and popped the question surrounded by her children. So it’s a good job Kerry said yes! Her daughter Molly handed her the diamond and gold engagement ring.

"I was totally in shock about it, ­especially as I knew nothing, but my girls knew what was going on,” Kerry said at the time. "There were roses and champagne and George got down on one knee. It was the most romantic thing in the world. I am so happy."

Kerry’s 5th pregnancy

Kerry announced she was pregnant with her 5th child – her 1st with fiancé George Kay in September 2013.

“At this very moment... this very second right here... everything is PERFECT. I love my life!” she tweeted.

During her pregnancy, Kerry continued to make wedding plans, but was determined to get into shape first. "I want a white lace vintage dress - I'll have to lose my baby weight first,” she said.

At 7-months pregnant, Kerry celebrated her pregnancy at her baby shower with friends and family. “This is the best pregnancy I've ever had,” she said. “I think it's because I'm happy. George is a great support, and I'm genuinely in love.”

‘Traumatic’ birth

When Kerry went into labour in April 2014, she was given an epidural – and that’s where she says the problems started. The pain relief had a strange effect on Kerry, giving her an 'out-of-body' experience.

"It was like I passed out but... I could still hear everyone else talking,” she said. “I really wish I hadn't had the epidural."

The labour progressed and when Dylan-Jorge was born, she was placed on her mum's chest. But it was then that Kerry knew something was seriously wrong.

"Something just didn't feel right... the baby's not breathing,” she said. “So a crash team came and took her off me and she completely died.

"They had 101 reasons what could have happened… she came out so fast that she reverted to how she was in the womb, living off the placenta… they put her on a life support machine."

And that wasn't the end of it. Kerry also revealed that straight after the birth, her partner George thought he might lose both of them.

"My placenta got stuck and wouldn't come out - I'd gone into complete shock, asking 'where's my baby?', and I kept saying to George, 'I'm so sorry, it's not supposed to be like this'."

Kerry started losing a lot of blood, and her placenta had to be removed manually.

Thankfully both Kerry and Dylan-Jorge recovered. Kerry was allowed home first, followed by her new daughter a couple of days later.

Future plans

In September 2014, Kerry married George Kay in a romantic Gloucestershire ceremony, surrounded by her 5 children. Her 6-year-old son Max was the couple’s pageboy and wore a smart navy blue suit to walk down the aisle. His big sister Heidi, 7, was flower girl in a sweet white dress and tiara. Baby Dylan-Jorge, then 5 months, wore a frilly white dress and watched the ceremony from her pram. And Kerry’s eldest children Molly, 14, and Lilly, 11, were bridesmaids in matching dark grey dresses.

After the wedding, the newlyweds jetted off to the Caribbean for a 10-day honeymoon, and Kerry revealed that baby-making wasn’t on the agenda. "We've talked about this and we decided," Kerry said. "Not this year. We both want to enjoy DJ. She is absolutely amazing – and I want to give my body a break."