Peter Andre has opened up about fatherhood as he made a rare comment about his former stepson, Harvey Price.
When the Mysterious Girl star was married to Katie Price, who shares her son with ex, Dwight Yorke, he lived with Harvey, now 22, who has Prader-Willi syndrome, the Mirror reports. The parents to son Junior, 18, and daughter, Princess, 16, split up in 2009 and Katie has since claimed Harvey took her break-up with the dad-of-five in 2009 hard. Pete was very close to Harvey and helped to raise him alongside the former glamour model during their four-year marriage.
Pete wanted to adopt Harvey but rarely mentions him now, however, he did recall bringing him up in a new interview alongside wife, Emily, with whom he shares three kids. Insisting he didn’t want any more children, after the couple welcomed baby Arabella earlier this year, Pete told OK! magazine: “I’ve changed six sets of nappies in my adult life, I’m done.”
After his split with Katie, the former glamour model claimed Pete’s relationship with Harvey ‘fizzled out’ because her son refused to see the singer. Writing in her book, Harvey and Me, she said: “‘I began to notice a change in Harvey, I’d say things like, ‘Do you want to go see Daddy Peter today?’ and he’d shout: ‘No!’ So then I’d be like: ‘But he has a cake waiting for you.'” Katie continued: “The split from Pete really upset Harvey. It must have been frustrating for him at the time because he couldn’t express how he felt. ‘But now he can and he remembers a lot more than you’d think. It’s really sad.”
In an unearthed clip from Sky News, Peter broke down in tears in 2010 as he spoke about his plans to adopt Harvey. The star became emotional after being shown footage of Harvey’s estranged dad Dwight slamming Pete’s plans to legally become a father to his son.
Dwight said: “I understand that he has to play a role, because that comes as part of the baggage when you get involved with Kate. But for him to say he was going to adopt my kid – and now look what’s happened four years down the road [Pete and Katie split]. Is he prepared to adopt Harvey at this stage? I don’t think so. The onus falls back on the father, which is me in the first place, so that’s why it should not have been mentioned.”
After watching the clip during an interview with Sky News’ Kay Burley, Pete hit back: “No disrespect, but has he seen Harvey since this interview? The bottom line is this. I love that child alright, and I don’t care what anybody says, I love that child. I see that child. To me, a nice little thank you would be nice instead of telling me. I asked to adopt him because I love him. I didn’t ask to adopt him to be disrespectful. It angers me when people turn around and I get a comment like that.”
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