Kerry Katona, once a chart-topping pop star and now a headline-grabbing media personality, has never shied away from sharing the highs and lows of her tumultuous life. On January 15, 2026, she sat down with The Times for a candid interview that peeled back the layers of her public persona, revealing a story marked by childhood trauma, relentless fame, heartbreak, and resilience. Her unfiltered recollections offered a rare glimpse into the life of a woman who’s endured more than her fair share of challenges—and somehow managed to keep her sense of humor intact.
Katona’s journey began in the chaos of a troubled childhood in Warrington. She recounted, without self-pity, how she witnessed her mother slit her wrists at just three years old—a memory so searing that she later tattooed her daughters’ names, Molly and Lilly-Sue, on her wrists as a reminder to keep going. “One of my first memories is watching my mum slit her wrists when I was three,” she told The Times. The scars of her youth ran deep: living off stale ketchup sandwiches, moving 70 times between crack dens, police protection, and foster care as her mother fled abusive partners. “I should have died many times. Sometimes I used to wish I had. Now I feel blessed to have reached 45.”
The pop world offered an escape, albeit a punishing one. Katona was discovered at 18 and catapulted into stardom as the bubbly blonde of Atomic Kitten, scoring No. 1 hits like “Whole Again.” But the music industry, she said, was an unforgiving place for young women. “We were so young, easy prey. We worked 24/7, but if we made a mistake we weren’t forgiven. It was brutal, out of control. The cameras up the skirts, 40 paparazzi outside my home 24 hours a day. It got to the stage when I thought, this will only be over when they get the headline ‘Kerry Katona dead’. It nearly happened. Fame is an abusive drug. I became addicted to being in the press.”
Her private life was no less turbulent. At 18, she met Westlife singer Brian McFadden. Their whirlwind romance culminated in a lavish OK! magazine wedding in 2002. “I thought he was my ‘for ever’. We were puppies, babies, back then. I wanted him to be my knight in shining armour and rescue me from my old life,” Katona confessed. But the fairytale ended abruptly when McFadden, on his stag night, was unfaithful. The betrayal led to a tense phone call in which he admitted he no longer loved her, shattering Katona’s dreams of lasting happiness. “It was so bad. I was very famous at the time, so I had to be shipped to Arizona for therapy,” she said. The couple split in 2004, but not before having two daughters, Molly and Lilly-Sue.
Motherhood became Katona’s anchor through the storms of her personal life. She later married Mark Croft, a taxi driver who, she says, was her mother’s drug dealer. That relationship, too, was chaotic—marked by betrayal, financial ruin, and two more children, Heidi and Max. “That should have been a one-night stand but I’m eternally grateful he gave me two amazing children,” Katona admitted, even as she recalled being declared bankrupt and reliving her childhood traumas. “It was a toxic, dark time.”
Her third marriage to rugby league player George Kay brought further heartbreak. Kay was arrested after allegedly assaulting her and died from an overdose in 2019. Despite the pain, Katona cherishes the daughter they shared, DJ. “It all sounds so bad. But I have another gorgeous daughter, DJ,” she reflected, underscoring her enduring commitment to her children.
Katona’s career has been as unpredictable as her personal life. After leaving Atomic Kitten, she became a fixture on reality TV, won I’m a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, and even became the face of Iceland supermarkets. But the pandemic forced her to pivot once again. With traditional gigs drying up, she turned to OnlyFans, the subscription-based platform where she now claims to earn thousands each month. “I do it all myself. It’s dead easy. I don’t use filters or airbrushing. I could sit here while we’re chatting, take off my top, do a bit of heavy breathing, film it and upload it. Why wouldn’t I? Why are you not doing it?” she quipped to The Times. The move, she said, was driven by necessity and a desire to provide for her five children, who range in age from 11 to 18.
Not one to shy away from controversy, Katona also revealed that she receives text messages “now and then” from Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform party—a revelation that raised eyebrows given their seemingly disparate worlds. “Nigel Farage texts me now and then. Of course he f***ing does. I bet he used to love a Page 3 back in the day. Maybe he wants a discount,” she joked. While she expressed a desire to campaign for more protection for young women in the creative industries, she was adamant that she has no plans to enter politics. “I’ve never voted in all my life. I couldn’t be a politician, but I think it’s the biggest scam how much tax we pay and yet look at all the potholes round here. It’s not good for my Lamborghini. And look at all the children still in care. Nothing gets done for them.”
Despite her rocky relationships, Katona’s children remain her pride and joy. “They are my gang. I don’t have a social life. I don’t leave home much unless it’s for work. I’m a bit of a loner. Entertaining people is draining; I find it exhausting.” Her daughter Lilly, in fact, revealed in 2023 that witnessing her parents’ difficult divorce put her off marriage altogether.
Now in a stable relationship with personal trainer Paolo Margaglione, whom she met on a reality TV dating show, Katona seems to have found a measure of peace. She continues to work—doing podcasts, touring as Donna in Mamma Mia!, and performing at Butlin’s and in pantomimes. “I love making people smile. My only addiction left is the press. I like being in the papers. But I do my own pap pictures and holiday photos now. I don’t want others making money from me.”
Looking back, Katona is unflinchingly honest about her journey. “For years it was a pity party. I felt sorry for myself. I thought I deserved a line of coke after my terrible childhood, my messed-up marriages, accountants stealing my money. I thought the world owed me a break. But no one is going to do anything for you. The only person who can is you.”
Kerry Katona’s story is a testament to survival—proof that even in the face of relentless adversity, it’s possible to carve out a life worth living, on your own terms.