Inbetweeners and Rivals actress Emily Atack spoke candidly about becoming pregnant at 16 and her ‘troubled teen’ years in a new podcast appearance
Emily Atack has opened up for the first time about becoming pregnant as a teenager, while in an “awful, abusive” relationship.
The 36-year-old shot to fame as Charlotte Hinchcliffe in the Inbetweeners in 2008 and has barely been out of the spotlight since – she is currently appearing in Rivals, and fronting game show Nobody’s Fool with Danny Dyer.
In a new podcast, she spoke candidly about her childhood years and leaving school at the age of 16, which led to her falling into the “wrong crowds” when her parents – Kate Robbins and Keith Atack – split.
Appearing on the How To Fail With Elizabeth Day podcast, she told the host: ‘My heart races when I think about being 16. I was a very troubled teenager. I find that difficult to talk about. I was such a loved child – we were encouraged to be creative, we were so privileged in so many ways. But there were a lot of things that went on in my childhood that really scarred me and have traumatised me.
READ MORE: Emily Atack says she was touched and sent inappropriate texts by male co-stars as a teenREAD MORE: Katie Price’s husband Lee Andrews ‘not hunted by Interpol’ as UK cops issue statement
“Because I was such a troubled teen, my poor parents, they just didn’t know what to do with me a lot of the time, and I was hanging around in the wrong crowds. I was sexually active with older boys and men, and that was very difficult for my parents.
“I remember when my dad left, at the time, and I’ve never actually told anybody this but I was pregnant, and I was very young. I was in this awful, abusive, horrible relationship, and I fell pregnant.
“It was just in the middle of all this stuff going on with my mum and dad. I remember because all of that awful stuff was going on, and obviously the pregnancy didn’t… I’ve never spoken openly about how or what happened, and I don’t know if I’m ready to yet, but obviously that pregnancy didn’t continue.”
While Emily didn’t discuss her pregnancy any further, she has since gone on to welcome her first child with fiancé Dr Alistair Garner – the pair introduced son Barney together in 2024. The following year, they announced their engagement.
Elsewhere in the chat, she insisted that her feelings about her childhood, and the decisions her parents made, have changed since becoming a mother.
“My family was falling apart and that was happening, I just felt very determined,” she said of her decision to move to London at 16, joined by her 15-year-old sister, Martha. “As I say, my parents are amazing people and I don’t berate them in any way for this. Everybody makes mistakes, and this was just a period of time where lots of mistakes were being made, but now as a mother, I understand.
“Also, those mistakes, I think actually they’ve led me to be where I am now because I think a lot of people think that I had it all handed to me on a plate because of who my parents were and because my mum was an actress, but I did it by myself. I really did.
“In the middle of being in these abusive, horrible relationships, I wanted to be with somebody. I wanted to be looked after, and so I was going out with all these awful guys and doing all that. I was trying to make a life for me and Martha.
“As I’m saying it out loud, I really don’t want people to think my parents are terrible, terrible people. They really aren’t and I love them so much, and we have the most amazing relationship. I do think it made us all stronger as a family.”
Emily and scientist Alistair, 40, had known each other since childhood before reconnecting as adults. They began dating in 2022 and soon became inseparable, announcing their engagement last July, almost a year after becoming parents for the first time.
Shedding light on their big day, Emily teased that they would be walking down the aisle in just a few months. Speaking to Luxury London magazine about their big day, she added: “I think I’ve nailed it. We’re getting married in September. I’ve very much enjoyed the planning process. Choosing napkins and stuff. I’m like, ‘My God, my life is here!'”
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
