RAISING three children and two stepchildren is a lot in itself – but even more so when you have to take on the role of “bad cop”.
Despite being 16 years younger than her husband, pop-star Peter Andre, it’s Emily who finds herself having to be the stricter parent, particularly when it comes to social media.
And that doesn’t just stop at the kids.
Speaking on their first joint Fabulous cover shoot, Peter, 53, admits he became so addicted to doomscrolling that he had to set up parental controls on his own phone and give his wife the password.
“What he did that worked well originally was that he got me to set up screen time,” explains Emily. “He had only 15 minutes a day on Instagram, for weeks. But then. . .”
“I found the password,” Peter admits. “It was 11pm and it said approve for 15 minutes, an hour or all day. And I’d press all day so I could stay on longer.
“But the break has definitely done me the world of good. The first two weeks were hell, because before that I would scroll for hours,” he says.
“And then he’d be like: ‘Oh, I’ve got to post this, please could you give me five more minutes?’” adds Emily. “And if I was at work, he’d ring me for the password.
“I actually see with him that there’s a massive correlation between his happiness and social media. It doesn’t impact him very well. That’s why the 15 minutes works. It’s a quick little burst. But imagine what it’s doing to kids’ brains.”
Seeing the effect it has on her husband, doctor Emily is thrilled that the government has announced plans to ban social media for under-16s by next spring.
Emily, 37, shares children, Amelia, 12, Theodore, nine, and Arabella, two, with Peter, as well as stepchildren Princess, 19, and Junior, 21.
She says: “I remember when Millie [Amelia] was about five, I said: ‘I’m really scared about how I’m going to manage social media with my kids,’ because I knew I didn’t want them to be on it. Someone told me that by the time the kids are teenagers, we would realise how bad it is and things would be in place to protect them. And now the ban is coming in and I’m so happy about it.
“Millie has a phone that she can use strictly on the weekend for about an hour a day, and absolutely no social media.
“I think kids like Princess and Junior have had it the hardest, as it was kind of a test and we didn’t know much about it. They had unrestricted access and parents didn’t realise how bad it would be.
“I had a real epiphany the other day. I follow someone on Instagram and I love her content about being a mum and cooking. But the comments were all criticising her. You would never walk up to somebody in the street and say any of the things that people type online. It made me realise you could post the most harmless, lovely content, but you’ll always get someone saying something nasty.”
While Junior and Princess, Peter’s eldest children with ex-wife Katie Price, have always lived their lives in the spotlight, he and Emily made a conscious decision not to show the faces of their three kids.
Earlier this year, Princess admitted that she was slightly jealous of their anonymity, explaining: “It’s weird, as we are all from the same family, but I think it’s good as they get to live. When I see them I think: ‘Oh, you get to live a normal life.’ It’s so cool.”
Peter says her comments sparked a conversation with his eldest two, where he asked them to be honest about whether they really wanted to be in the public eye.
“I had a conversation with Junior and Princess the other day about this. Bista [Peter’s nickname for Princess] said: ‘One hundred per cent. I wanna be hugely successful.’ While Junior said: ‘Is this because you don’t believe in me?’ He is so talented, but I wanted to be clear he knew what he was letting himself in for.
“He looks at me and sees I’ve done well and I own properties. But they’ve not seen the effect that everything I’ve been through has had on my mental health.
“Junior said: ‘Well, it’s too late now anyway.’ But I told him about how Jason Orange left Take That and went back to being anonymous, adding: ‘You are 21. If you want out, you can get out at any time.’”
Peter continues: “He came back to me three days later and said he wanted to do it. I said to them both: ‘I just want you guys to do it because you want to do it. I don’t want you to feel there’s pressure.’ It’s weird now, because maybe I should have thought of that years ago, but we didn’t know what it was going to be like. Luckily, they’re really good, respectful kids.”
Emily adds: “They’re so lovely. I’ve been their stepmum for 14 years. It all happened so seamlessly. I’ve known Princess since she was three and I honestly think I’ve told them off less than a handful of times. They are amazing. It was almost like I had a little bit of practice before doing it with my own kids. The role of stepmum is different to a mum. I always felt like it was more like a big sister role with them. That worked really well.”
We are set to learn more about life in their household, as Emily and Peter are launching their first podcast – At Home With The Andres – and while we might not see Theodore, Amelia and Arabella’s faces any time soon, we might get to hear their voices, as they will pop in for chats on it.
“We are so excited about the podcast,” says Peter. “We are working with Sony, so it’s going to be big. There’s a lot going on. We are changing nappies, potty training and having fun together.
“It’s predominantly me and Emily, but there might be the odd time that one of the kids gets involved. Not just the older children, because the younger ones are so hilarious, and nobody really knows them.”
Emily says she is cautious about embarrassing her kids and is aware that involving them in the podcast is a balancing act, as is opening up their doors to the podcast in the first place.
“Our house isn’t tame. It’s chaos. The doorbell rings every five minutes. Peter is always inviting people for dinner, so there can be more than eight people at the table every night. He will bring random people in for a chat.
“One time, I’d literally just given birth to Millie, I’m there breastfeeding on the sofa in my own home, and I look up and he had invited the Sainsbury’s delivery man in for a coffee. I’m post-op recovering, thinking: ‘Oh, hi! Welcome to our house.’”
Peter laughs: “I don’t know what I was thinking there, you poor thing. But our home is chaotic and so full of life.”
The pair met when Emily’s dad, surgeon Ruaraidh MacDonagh, operated on Peter in 2010.
They were friends for two years before Peter asked Ruaraidh’s permission to take his daughter on a date.
Fourteen years on, they have an easiness about them – often finishing each other’s sentences. But when they first got together, there was a scepticism that they would go the distance because of their age difference. They have truly proven the doubters wrong.
“I think we have defied the odds,” says Emily.
“And I hate to say it, I’m pushing 40 now, which is really depressing. But we don’t feel the age gap at all. Personally, I think age is nothing. It’s whether you have the same morals and interests, that you like spending time together, that you want the same things in life. The only time we notice it is when Pete will say to me: ‘Oh, have you seen this movie?’ And I won’t have a clue.”
Peter adds: “There may have been people who were sceptical, but so many others didn’t even notice. Although, we were at an awards ceremony years ago and there were so many movie stars – like Pierce Brosnan – but Emily wasn’t remotely phased, until Prince Charles came in.
“Then this gentleman came over and said ‘hey’ and I couldn’t believe he remembered me. Emily had no idea who he was. I said: ‘That’s Jon Bon Jovi’ and she said: ‘What’s a Bon Jovi?’ That’s when you notice the age difference.”
“Embarrassing,” Emily laughs.
“You left me to chat to him for a good five minutes. Also, I’m just rubbish at music and movies. That’s not even age.”
Despite the pressures of being in the spotlight, raising a blended family together and dealing with the drama that can sometimes come with being the ex of Katie Price – Peter and Katie recently announced a truce after years of feuding – the couple say they rarely exchange a cross word.
“It is so bizarre that we have been married 11 years, and I can’t remember us ever having an argument,” Peter says.
“We did,” Emily quips. “You bickered with me over the prune juice. I bought juice and left it in the fridge for a year. I kept thinking I’d open it. It wasn’t past its date. And every week, he’d say: ‘Can we get rid of the prune juice?’” she laughs.
“It’s that type of thing. Thermostat wars. He’s always cold, I’m always hot. We don’t do raised voices. Neither of us are argumentative, we’d rather have a calm chat and resolve things.”
But Peter admits that wasn’t always the case, and Emily’s changed him for the better.
“You change a lot as you get older,” he says.
“In the ’90s, I was smoking, drinking, partying, swearing, and I do none of those things now. If I think about how strict I was with Junior compared to how I am with Arabella – I’m so soft now. I’m much more chill as a dad. Emily is a calming influence.
“We both have parents who have been married for a long time, and it’s something we both want and hope for. We’ve been married for 11 years – I think when we hit 20 years, that will be a good milestone.”
“Let’s hope the podcast goes well then!” Emily jokes.
- The At Home with Andres podcast is out weekly from Wednesday 30th September