Kate Ferdinand has spoken candidly about how she felt "constantly judged and compared" in the early stages of her relationship with former footballer Rio Ferdinand. The former TOWIE star, who began dating the sportsman in 2017, spoke candidly about the struggles she faced when becoming a stepmum to Rio's three children after their mum Rebecca Ellison sadly passed away from cervical cancer in 2015.
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Speaking at a screening and Q&A of her and Rio's BBC documentary Rio and Kate: Becoming a Stepfamily, Kate told HELLO! and other reporters: "I needed help. I felt like I was really, really struggling with the whole situation." The 29-year-old continued: "And like I said in the film, I just didn't know anyone in a similar situation. I couldn't turn to my friends for help. No one really knew what to say. So I think, obviously, it's good to help other people [with the film] but us as a five we needed help."
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On the difficulties she faced in entering a sensitive situation, Kate explained: "I felt really judged and like I couldn't live up to the memory of Rebecca and [that] I was constantly compared. And I wanted to be able to be me." She continued: "And you know, I made a lot of mistakes at the beginning because I wasn't a mum. And I thought that every mistake that was made was being judged. And I found that really difficult." The couple, who married in a romantic ceremony in Turkey in 2019, revealed that, as a family, they're in a much better place.
© Photo: BBCThe couple spoke candidly in their new documentary film
Rio, who bravely opened up about the loss of his wife in his 2017 BAFTA winning documentary Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum And Dad, told HELLO! and other reporters: "I think at that time, when we decided to do [the film], we were in a totally different place to where we are now." He continued: "We were struggling through certain aspects of our relationships with friends and family, us as a five as well, working things out. And I knew from the [documentary] before, and I was trying to explain this to Kate, how therapeutic this whole process is."
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Rio, who also sadly lost his mum Janice to cancer in 2017, explained: "When Kate needed that little bit of guidance, it wasn't forthcoming." He went on: "With time, you understand that everyone's emotions and everyone's feelings and they have different opinions on the whole situation. And [people would say] 'Is it too quick? Is it too soon? Is she moving into soon?' So everyone's got an opinion. But it's [taken] us a while to understand that… it's really our opinions that matter in our house, which is going to shape our lives together."
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