Football pundit and former Lioness Alex Scott broke down in tears discussing her tough childhood and her experiences of abuse.
Alex, 38, made her first ever appearance on Loose Women on Monday (12 June) to discuss the rocky years her family went through, which she wrote about in her autobiography, How (Not) To Be Strong.
The ex-England player was clearly emotional as she began talking about what she, her brother Ronnie and their mother, Carol, had experienced, and began to cry when asked by host Ruth Langsford to explain more.
She had to take a moment to hold back her tears as Coleen Nolan comforted her, and she explained: "It's hard because we felt we couldn't do anything and you want to be there to save your mum and she's also doing the same for us.
"It's weird because obviously the paperback comes out tomorrow and I was like, 'No, I'm in a better place, I can talk about it'. But straight away you have the visuals and you go straight back to those moments, which are hard."
Alex said she and her brother Ronnie had regularly heard their father, Tony, abusing their mother and claimed that he was violent and controlling. Ruth added that Tony had spoken out to deny Alex's claims after the memoir was published.
Alex's parents divorced when she was seven and she spoke to the Loose Women stars about the fears she lived with as a child before her glittering football career took off.
She said: "I think that in the world I grew up in, everyone had a perception that you have to be strong and [what] I needed to do is strip that back and show my emotions and vulnerability.
"We felt like we couldn't do anything, and you wanted to save your mum. I thought I was better now and would be okay, but the visuals come back. You're just lying in bed hearing everything and praying your mum is going to be alive in the morning."
Talking about her love for her mum, Alex added: "My mum is my everything and I want to give her everything. Victims think they're cowards, but my mum isn't a coward and she saved me and my brother.
"We didn't know how to communicate about it until the book. I did a lot of therapy to break generational cycles. I was ready to talk and my mum wasn't. And she loved it and learned so much about me and how me and my brother were affected."
Alex had previously spoken about her childhood on Steven Bartlett's podcast The Diary of a CEO, where she also explained that football had given her a safe space growing up.
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