Ruth Dodsworth opens up on 'parenting guilt' of life with abusive ex-husband

What did you miss?

ITV weather presenter Ruth Dodsworth has spoken about the "parenting guilt" she felt over her children growing up in a house with her abusive ex-husband.

Her daughter Grace appeared alongside her on Wednesday's Loose Women to explain how her childhood had seemed normal to her even though her father was extremely controlling and abusive towards her mother. The pair shared how they were moving on with their lives and the happiness they had found since Dodsworth escaped her ex.

What, how, and why?

Wednesday's Loose Women panel welcomed Ruth Dodsworth and her daughter Grace, 20, who spoke about living in a coercively controlling household and being the victims of financial abuse as well as the other types of abusive behaviour they suffered.

Dodsworth was married to Jonathan Wignall for nearly 20 years, but escaped her abusive husband in 2019 and has since spoken about his violence and control. Wignall was jailed for three years in 2021 after pleading guilty to stalking and coercive control but ended up serving 18 months, leaving the ITV weather presenter with £250,000 of debt that he had racked up in her name.

But asked by the Loose Women panel about growing up in that atmosphere, Grace said: "As a child, I grew up with it so I wasn't really aware of any of it, I thought it was normal. It was nothing out of the ordinary to me until the event of the night happened. Then I was like, 'wait a minute, that's not right' and then everything started to become more clear to me."

Grace was speaking about the night of her father's arrest, when she and her brother Jack had to warn their mother not to come home as they feared what he would do to her. Dodsworth said to her daughter: "You're so used to shielding your children and you think if you keep your voice down then actually they haven't heard - but actually, you heard and saw everything. It was your normal, you didn't realise that mummy locking us in the bathroom to keep us away from him wasn't normal."

Opening up on her feelings, Dodsworth said: "It's so difficult as a mum now to listen to you saying this, because parenting is all about guilt isn't it. I still live with the fact that I allowed you in a way to grow up like that."

She also spoke about presenting a different version of their lives on social media and at work, saying: "It looked fabulous, but it couldn't have been further from the truth. I'd go into work, put on my telly face, get through, and I never knew what I was going home to. I didn't want the outside world to know what they thought was my life actually wasn't."

But the mother and daughter said that they hoped sharing their story would help others like them, as Dodsworth said: "There is life after domestic abuse. It's not always easy, but I'm alive to tell the tale. Everyone deserves a lovely life and we are living proof that it doesn't matter how awful your life has been, you're entitled to a good life."

What else happened on Loose Women?

Katie Piper returned to the show on Wednesday after six weeks off recovering from eye surgery. The TV star was attacked with acid by an ex-boyfriend in 2008 and as part of her lifelong recovery, she had one eye sewn shut to allow it to heal over the course of the next year.

Piper said: "It's been quite painful for me so it's quite a relief to have it stitched shut because it's much more comfortable. It's not permanent, it's going to be about a year and then hopefully I can have it opened."

Loose Women airs on ITV at 12.30pm on weekdays.

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