Coleen Nolan has opened up about the abortion she had at the age of 16.
The ‘Loose Women’ panellist gave an honest account of how she decided to terminate her pregnancy, as she spoke about it for the first time on TV.
Speaking on Monday’s (6 March) edition of the ITV daytime show, the ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ winner said she felt like abortion was the only option when she fell pregnant at the height of her pop fame as part of The Nolans.
”I had just turned 16 when I found out I was pregnant. And I had just joined my sisters and with my parents being Irish Catholic I had never had a conversation with my mum or dad about sex, or boyfriends or anything,” Coleen explained.
“I was six weeks pregnant and I did go ahead and have a termination. And I didn’t tell a single soul. Apart from who would have been the father of the child, who was fantastic and stayed with me through the whole thing.”
Coleen, who first spoke about her abortion in 2009 autobiography ‘Up Close and Personal’, went on to say she never told her parents, explaining how she thought it was “unnecessary”, and they have now both passed away.
She since went on to have two sons with then-husband Shane Richie, and also have a teenage daughter with current partner Ray Fensome.
Her co-star Stacey Solomon also discussed the decision she faced when she fell pregnant with her first son Zachary over 10 years ago.
“When I found out I was pregnant, I was 17 and so was like, ‘I can’t do it now, I’m too young, I must have the procedure’,” she said.
“My mum went with me, there were quite a few steps before the actual procedure, a consultation, you speak to a therapist, and a scan.
“That’s where it became a bit too real for me. I could see my mum in tears and the reality hit me.”
‘Loose Women’ airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV.