Peter Andre has opened up about his father’s childhood growing up as the eldest of 18 children in Cyprus, sharing one particular moment in his family history that ‘breaks his heart’
Peter Andre has spoken about a “horrific” family moment that “breaks his heart”. Peter, 52, rose to fame in the mid 1990s with hits such as Mysterious Girl and Flava before appearing on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! in 2004.
He was born in London to Greek Cypriot parents before his family relocated to Australia’s Gold Coast when he was just six years old. His father Savvas Andrea was no stranger to having to move around.
Peter says Savvass packed his bags and left Cyprus when he was just 13 years old in a bid to learn a trade and carve out a life in the UK. The singer explained his father was the eldest of 18 children, meaning he had to try and find a way to help his family earn money.
The dad-of-five says there was one moment Savvas would recall when he had to try and find milk for one of his infant brothers. On the Nicky Byrne HQ podcast, Peter said: “My dad was one of 12, he was initially one of 18, crazy right?
“Thirteen of the kids were born and dad was the eldest, so dad had to go and find ways to work to earn money for the family because they had to sleep in one room.
“This story is told by a lot of families of that generation. But the boy, the 13th boy, and dad told me this story and it breaks my heart, it absolutely breaks my heart. Dad had to go around the villages to get milk because after the mother had had so many children, the milk had run dry so eventually there was none left.
“My dad had to witness his brother dying in his arms. There were really horrific stories of what happened in those days and dad worked from 12, he was determined, like me, to just achieve.”
Peter has previously revealed that Savvas was sold as a “slave” to help buy food for his family. In a 2015 interview with the Radio Times, Peter said: “It’s very interesting with my dad because at 11 years old in Cyprus, he was sold as a slave.
“They had no food, no money. So some of the kids had to be sold to earn money for the family. And then Dad came back after years.
“I didn’t know this until recently. And I said, ‘Dad, are you serious?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, but son, that was our life’.”
Peter says Savvas learnt to be a barber once he arrived in the UK, maintaining a shop in Paddington over the years. Peter added: “He came to London not being able to speak a word of English, learnt a trade. He became a barber – and he still owns a barber’s shop in Paddington.”
Peter now resides in Surrey with wife Emily, an NHS doctor. The pair share three children together, while Emily is also step-mum to Junior and Princess, Peter’s children from his marriage with Katie Price.
Throughout his career Peter has appeared on a host of TV shows including Strictly Come Dancing, Footballers’ Wives, and Lemon La Vida Loca. He will be returning to screens from 9.30am this morning (February 7) on James Martin’s Saturday Morning on ITV One.
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