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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Daniel Bird & Katie Wilson

Guilt-stricken Kerry Katona admits daughter Molly moved to Ireland to escape ex's rages

Kerry Katona has admitted her daughter Molly moved to Ireland to escape her evil ex George Kay.

Her eldest daughter, who she shares with first husband Brian McFadden, went to Dublin to live with her grandparents in 2017.

She recently turned 21 and graduated from Trinity College with a Foundation Diploma in Acting and Theatre.

But guilt-stricken Kerry says the real reason Molly left the family home is because of abusive George, who died in 2019 from an overdose after eating a sock filled with cocaine.

In an exclusive chat with The Mirror, Kerry shared: "It was good for her education at the time, but I know George [Kay] played a part in that, Molly gave me a look of weakness that I will never, ever forget.

"One million percent, I live with that guilt every day but I think she did the right thing moving over there."

Kerry with eldest daughters Lilly-Sue and Molly, who she shares with Brian McFadden (AMP/FameFlynet.uk.com)

Kerry further recalled what life was like at home then in her new book Whole Again: Love, Life and Me.

She says former rugby player George would fly into violent rages when he was high on drugs and attack her - and admitted she “would have died” had she stayed with him.

The mum-of-five wrote: “I know deep down that seeing me like that was what promoted Molly to move to Ireland that year.

“She was desperate to go to college and live a normal life and she opted to do that in Dublin, where she could live with her grandparents, Brian’s mum and dad.

“I was devastated but I put on a front, not wanting her to feel trapped as I did in Crowborough.”

Kerry with abusive ex George, who died in 2019 (Getty Images)
With their daughter DJ when she was a baby (Twitter)

Kerry continued: “She [Molly] never explicitly said it, but I’m absolutely certain she just wanted to get away from fear and pain George brought into our lives.

“And how could I ever truly forgive myself for allowing him in like I did? I felt that I was responsible for her sadness. I allowed this to happen.

“But either way, I felt like I was losing Molly. And suddenly, my marriage just wasn’t worth it. I had fought as hard as I could.

“Her [Molly’s] look of disdain was the last straw for me.”

Mum-of-five Kerry is now loved up with boyfriend Ryan Mahoney (Instagram)

Kerry and George met as teenagers when they were both students at Padgate High School in Warrington.

They were childhood sweethearts but Kerry found fame in Atomic Kitten and George went on to have a rugby career.

After reuniting in their early 30s, they married in 2014 – just months after their daughter Dylan-Jorge (DJ), now eight, was born.

But the marriage only lasted a year as George became increasingly violent so much so that she was forced to take a restraining order out against him.

At the time he died he had not seen his daughter DJ in over a year – but Kerry says she has no regrets as it kept their little one safe.

"He had threatened to rape my mum and slash her up in front of me. So I didn’t know what he was going to do next. I was terrified he was going to hurt her or DJ," Kerry shares when recalling a threatening FaceTime with George before his death.

"Apparently, he’d planned on injecting her with heroin and then killing himself," she writes in her book.

Kerry is currently engaged to fiancé Ryan Mahoney. In addition to daughter DJ, the star is mum to Molly, 21, and Lilly, 19, who she shares with Brian McFadden, and Heidi, 15, and Max, 14, from her marriage to Mark Croft.

*Kerry Katona: Whole Again, published by Mirror Books, is available from high street stores, supermarkets and Amazon now

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