Wanted singer's widow Kelsey makes moving plea after nasty comments about pregnancy
Kelsey Parker, widow of The Wanted singer Tom Parker, has issued a moving appeal after she was subject to hateful comments following her pregnancy announcement.
In September last year she announced she was in a new relationship, two years after the death of her husband aged 33.
Parker shares two children with the singer, who died of cancer in 2022: five-year-old daughter, Amelia, and three-year-old son, Bodhi. Last month, she revealed she was pregnant with her new partner, Will Lindsay.
But the happy news came with much backlash as Parker said she has been subject to abuse online by people who think she is not grieving in the “right way”.
"My two kids are so thrilled they are going to have a little brother or sister,” she told The Sun.
"People online don’t think about the joy it’s brought them. And should they not get to have a sibling because their dad died?"
Some of the hateful comments include: “Tom hasn’t even been gone three years and yet she’s already got a new partner and is now pregnant?” according to The Sun.
Another said the announcement “makes me sick”, while one troll accused Parker of being “in a rush” to move on.
“It’s crazy,” she said. “I knew I would be judged. But people who haven’t lost their partner, I don’t know how you can pass comment on me? I have been in such a dark place from losing Tom.
"I was so lonely and so unhappy. I feel like there are people who want me to always feel like that. I feel like I do deserve to try and find a bit of happiness.”
Parker says she feels people expect her to be perpetually grieving: “I think people think I should be sitting at home and dressed in black all day. I have two children (and another one on the way) that I have to get out of bed for. People are shocked I go to Tesco but I need to feed my kids.”
She added: “My life changed the moment Tom was diagnosed. But I have the power and strength to keep going. But I'm judged for that. It's almost frowned upon that I'm trying to look on the brighter side of life.
"But would it be better to be in a dark place or if I was getting drunk or doing drugs or whatever? Either way I can not win.”
Parker said she has made the difficult decision to make peace with her husband’s death.
“I also vowed til death us do part. He has died. It sounds harsh but I’ve got to accept no matter how much I wish it was different, he's not coming back. If I could bring him back and spend the rest of my life with him and have my two kids and have more kids with him, I would. He was my life, my partner and my soulmate but that's not happened for me.”
She said that her late husband’s family “are so happy for me” and that his mother “won’t be able to help herself spoiling the new baby”. The family have already planned their first getaway in time for when the baby is here.
"She will be their granny too and she will treat them the same as Aurelia and Bodhi,” she said.
