The Chase’s Anne Hegerty details heartbreaking way ‘deadbeat’ dad abandoned family
The Chase viewers have seen Anne Hegerty on-screen as her quizzing persona The Governess for 14 years.
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The Chase’s Anne Hegerty has detailed the harsh way her father left her and her mother when she was younger. In an episode of ITV’s DNA Journey, the 65-year-old opened up about her childhood.
She revealed: ”My dad left home just before Christmas. He left my mother a note saying, ‘For Christmas 1970, one house free from husband’.
As she detailed how her father abandoned them, Anne’s friend and Chase co-star Shaun Wallace was shocked to hear what had happened. Pulling a disgusted face, he replied: “Wow!”
During the show, the ITV star confessed she’s cynical about families. She explained: “People say, ‘Were you brought up in a nuclear family?’ I was like, ‘Well, it kind of exploded, so yeah?’”
Before going on her DNA journey to discover her family's history, Anne revealed her mother was deeply disapproving of anyone knowing about their ancestors. Despite her reservations about families, Anne was keen to know more about her history.
Anne has often spoken in the past about her father, who died in September 2017 at the age of 90.
Whilst on the White Wine Question Time podcast with Kate Thornton, she said: “In many ways, my dad was a deadbeat.
“He was a man who spent his entire life doing his best never to have more than £6,000 at a time, because if you had more than that then you couldn’t get the money from the social.
“To him, the function of life was to live on the welfare state. He basically felt ‘Why should I work when the government will give me money to not work?’”
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Despite her harsh quips about her father, The Chase star has hailed her dad for supporting her when she was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of 47.
Along with this, she expressed that her late dad always told her that she was able to accomplish anything she set her mind to, despite other people putting her down.
She told The Mirror in 2019: “My dad was the one who told me ‘You can do this’ and ‘I’m sure one day you will accomplish something.’
“He died last September. I got on well with him. He was such a pain in so many ways but he was the only person who told me I could do things.
“He was thrilled about my success and I wish I had more time to spend with him. He would have liked that.”
Before becoming one of ITV’s Chase stars, Anne started her career in journalism as she was a reporter for the South Wales Argus before moving to Manchester.
Although she also briefly worked as a ghostwriter, Anne’s life propelled into fame back in 2010 when she joined The Chase.
ITV’s DNA Journey is available to watch on ITVX.