Parents of UK’s biggest family Sue and Noel Radford reveal the crisis that almost ended their 30-year marriage on 22 Kids & Counting

• Noel and Sue Radford revealed how their marriage nearly fell apart in 2000s 
• The couple opened up about past on latest episode of their Channel 5 show 
• READ MORE: How much do the Radfords REALLY make?

Sue Radford revealed that she nearly considered divorcing her husband Noel after a ‘nightmare’ situation in the early 2000s left them ‘thinking about debt’ night and day.

In the latest episode of Channel 5’s 22 Kids & Counting, the couple looked back on their 30 years of marriage as they visited their old wedding venue and other landmarks significant to their relationship. 

At one point, they stopped by a mobile shop at a high street in Kendal, Cumbria – a site which the pair once leased to try and expand their pie business.

Sue, 47, and Noel, 52, had invested in the then-prime location for their bakery in 2001 after seeing another shop flourish when they opened up a second site.

The parents explained that at the time, they were ‘so proud’ to have their own business in Heysham, Lancashire and ‘wanted to expand’.

Sue Radford revealed that she nearly considered divorcing her husband Noel after a ‘nightmare’ situation in the early 2000s left them ‘thinking about debt’ night and day

They took out a ‘huge’ loan to invest in their thriving dream – only to be slammed with national disaster. 

‘To start with it did really well,’ Noel explained. ‘It was doing good – and then not long here – foot-and-mouth hits the country and to be honest I think Cumbria was one of the worst affected areas.’

The agricultural crisis is thought to have cost the UK economy £8 billion overall, with millions of cows and sheep killed to half spread of the disease. 

Cumbria, with some 893 cases, was severely affected by the outbreak, leaving the area devastated.

‘It just killed the tourism,’ Noel added, as the family was plunged into despair.

‘I cant even describe it, it just caused so much stress,’ Sue revealed. ‘You used to go to bed thinking about the debt, you’d wake up thinking about the debt, you’d wake up during the night thinking about the debt…

‘If anything was going to have caused us to get a divorce, it was this.’

The mother-of-22 added: ‘Looking back now, it was a time where I genuinely thought our marriage was not gonna pull through that.’

The Radford pictured with their super-sized family. In a recent episode, the couple opened up about a ‘nightmare’ from their past

In the latest episode of Channel 5’s 22 Kids & Counting, the couple looked back on their 30 years of marriage as they visited their old wedding venue and other landmarks significant to their relationship

Noel said it was the ‘worst thing he ever did’ and ‘hated’ the experience. 

But, now stronger than ever in both their marriage and family business, the couple admit the test made them ‘stronger’.

‘Looking back…you do have to do through those things,’ Sue said.

The couple got married in Kendal, in the 90s when Sue was 17 and Noel, in his early twenties.

During the episode, they toured through important locations in their marriage, including their old wedding venue and the first humble house where they lived.

It comes as 22 Kids and Counting viewers were left unimpressed after Noel toyed with the idea of retiring from his bakery in a recent episode of the hit series dubbed ‘contrived’ by audiences. 

The couple got married in Kendal, in the 90s when Sue was 17 and Noel, in his early twenties. Pictured, the sizeable family enjoying some down time

Sue and Noel pictured in 2018. During the latest episode, they toured through important locations in their marriage, including their old wedding venue and the first humble house where they lived

Now stronger than ever in both their marriage and family business, the couple admit the test made them ‘stronger’. Pictured in 2018 

At the start of the Channel 5 show last month, the father-of-22 admitted that he spends too much time at the Radford Pie Company in Morecambe, which he’s owned since 1999.

Craving more family time, the dad of Britain’s biggest brood announced that he was ready to retire in order to help his wife Sue around the home, and enjoy more of his children’s company. 

He even had his daughter Chloe, 27, and son Luke, 22, compete to see who was the best placed to take over the family’s business. However, after finding retirement boring, the dad-of-22 eventually had to beg his children back for his job. 

Viewers did not enjoy the episode, with some saying it felt like the intrigue was forced, and that Noel had never intended to retire at all. 

Noel, who has been a baker since leaving school, admitted at the start of the show that he was beginning to dream of retirement. 

‘I’ve been dreaming about walking away so much recently,’ he said in the programme. ‘I just don’t know how things will go.’ 

‘You need to let things go a bit before you can even think about retiring,’ Sue told her husband.

As the couple discussed their family life and relationship, Noel admitted that he felt he was ‘missing out on family time,’ and leaving Sue dealing with the brunt of childcare and housework.   

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