Denise Welch has taken aim at her son Matty Healy's depiction of his past, dismissing his life story as "absolute b*****s" during a recent podcast appearance. The Loose Women star didn’t hold back when discussing the retrospective tales shared by her son, the frontman of the band The 1975.
Matty recently recounted how he slaved away at Caffé Nero to buy his first guitar, but Denise challenged this narrative outright. “He told this story about how he slaved away laboriously working at Caffé Nero so he could buy his first guitar. Absolute b****s!” she exclaimed, adding her own insights on their family’s supportive background.
Denise explained it was important for Matty to manage work alongside his aspirations of pursuing rock and roll dreams. Reflecting on his time at the coffee chain, she revealed, “He came back after a week and told me he was going to get a certificate as the best trainee barista they’d ever had. I was as proud as if he’d said ‘barrister.’” But beneath this pride lay the reality of Matty’s brief tenure at Caffé Nero. It turned out, unbeknownst to Denise at the time, he was later let go for being "the worst trainee barista they'd ever had."
What followed was almost comedic, as Matty continued to leave their home in Wilmslow, Cheshire, wearing his Caffé Nero T-shirt for nearly another month to keep the ruse alive. Denise shared how Matty, alongside his bandmate and songwriting partner George Daniel, took on additional work delivering takeaways for their local Chinese restaurant. Denise jested about the speed of delivery when Matty was present, quipping, "If it was just me and Matty’s dad – my ex-husband Tim Healy – the food would often take quite a long time. If Matty was at home too, the takeaway would turn up almost instantly."
Despite his initial challenges, Denise insisted her son and George staff did receive generous tips on their gigs. She humorously critiqued the image Matty constructed about his struggles, saying he painted the picture of someone "kicking a tin can down the back roads in some kind of, really dark, depressing place"—while he actually lived comfortably with his parents. "This is obviously the ‘Liam Gallagher version’ of life he’s chosen to project," she quipped, referencing the iconic frontman of Oasis*, known for his own rock star persona.
The interaction between mother and son reveals the stark differences between perceived hardship and actual lifestyle. Denise's comments not only highlight her love and pride for Matty but also shine light on the often-rosy portrayal of hardship seen among musicians, especially within the rock genre. The candid discussions shared on the podcast reflect the dynamics present within many artistic families, where childhood and youth experiences are often romantically embellished or dramatically transformed for public consumption—often leading to disconnects between actual loved ones and the narratives they present.
Overall, Denise Welch's witty takedown of her son’s embellished life story serves as both entertaining and enlightening, reminding listeners of the nuances behind celebrity narratives and the importance of authenticity, even among those who have lived extraordinary lives.