Lulu has opened up about her battle with alcoholism and has admitted she “thought she was a bad person” as she struggled to overcome her addiction before getting sober in 2013
Lulu has candidly admitted she “thought she was a bad person” whilst grappling with her alcohol addiction. This revelation follows the Eurovision champion’s emotional moment when she broke down whilst acknowledging she “couldn’t say she was a great parent” to her son Jordan.
The iconic Shout vocalist shares her 48-year-old son with former husband John Freida, the renowned celebrity hairstylist. The 75-year-old was married to John, 74, from 1977 until 1991, following her earlier marriage to Bee Gees legend Maurice Gibb.
During an appearance on Busted frontman Matt Willis ‘ podcast On The Mend, Lulu spoke frankly about her struggles with alcohol dependency.
The star revealed she’s been sober since 3 November 2013, explaining how she eventually discovered that alcoholism is “an illness”. Yet prior to this understanding, Lulu confesses she battled with negative self-perception.
She explained: “I went into recovery, I learnt that it’s an illness, and I was so relieved because I thought I was a bad person. I had all this confused s**t in my head about who I should be.
“I started to understand, this is an illness and you can change it. I’ve mentioned before that I was a meditator and meditation, what it does, it helps you overcome a lot of issues in your life.
“I struggled with the fact that I’ve had a guru for 45 years, I’ve meditated, I’ve travelled to India, I’ve toured with were and I’ve followed an Eastern path, a spiritual path, but there were these characters in me that were because people wouldn’t like me if they knew who I really was.”
During a recent podcast appearance with psychotherapist Julia Samuel, Lulu candidly discussed her relationship with her son. She disclosed that he refuses to listen to her interviews as they prove “too painful” for him.
She explained: “He will not listen to this, of course. It would be too painful, I should imagine, and anyway, he knows all this. He said, ‘I won’t be reading that book’. He said, ‘I know it all anyway’.”
The singer went on: “We are closer and closer and closer because I’ve looked at my pain, and I want to big myself up and say he is impressed at the work I do, but he has told me, you know, he’s..”
Julia cut in: “Proud of you?” to which Lulu replied, “of the work that I’ve done?”
Visibly moved, Lulu added: “I can’t even find the words, but that’s what makes me want to cry because he’s very kind and forgiving of what I didn’t give him.”
The star acknowledges there are aspects of her life she wishes she’d handled differently, but says Jordan has “accepted it and moved on” and the pair are now “kind of on the same page”. She’s keen to make “amends” and feels it’s “great” that she can be present for her grandchildren.
“He has forgiven me for all of the things…he’s so magnanimous, but he’s also very intelligent, and kindness and intelligence, I think, come together so he’s kind,” she concluded. Jordan pursued a career in the entertainment industry like his mother, portraying Prince William in a television film in 2002.
However, he later shifted gears towards the restaurant business, working with renowned chefs such as Gordon Ramsay.
