Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall has opened up about how his daughter – Sienna – feels about him leaving the UK and spending the next two to three weeks in Australia without any communication.
Halsall is one of the 10 celebrities joining the show this year, and will join the likes of Coleen Rooney, Danny Jones, Oti Mabuse, Melvin Odoom and GK Barry.
The new batch of celebrities arrived in Australia across the week and will battle it out through Bushtucker Trials to be crowned the new King or Queen of the Jungle.
As the competition begins tonight, Halsall has reflected on how he feels to be leaving his daughter behind – admitting she found it harder.
Whilst discussing that “bland food” and small portions won’t be a problem, Halsall touched on how his daughter reacted to the news, saying: “That’s going to be really difficult.
“She has found the idea of me going difficult. It is only in the last two weeks or so that she has come around to the idea.
“We never spend more than two weeks apart. I am very emotional about Sienna, so it will be interesting to see how I cope.
“I tend to try to hide my emotions but with Sienna I’m not very good at all – I think I will have several blubs. She is 11 and so I’m hoping I won’t embarrass her.”
Halsall shares his daughter with ex-wife and former Coronation Street star Lucy-Jo Hudson – who were at the time seen as soap lands golden couple.
However, the couple shocked fans when they announced their split in 2018 and proceeded to have a rather public fallout – with the couple’s relationship being “as bad as ever”.
An insider told The Sun: “Alan and Lucy-Jo still aren’t on speaking terms. If Alan needs anything he goes through her boyfriend Lewis (Devine).
“They both want what’s best for their daughter Sienna but they won’t communicate. Things are just as bad as when they first fell out.
“Alan still has a few issues with how things played out between them when they split. Alan’s pals are joking that Lucy-Jo will make sure he’s put through the wringer Down Under.”
Halsall and Hudson’s relationship turned sour when her new boyfriend – Lewis Devine – called Sienna his own on social media.
The Corrie star furiously posted in response: “You’re welcome to keep the lying cheating one & call her your own! But not my daughter.”
Hudson later admitted that co-parenting with Halsall can be difficult as they sometimes clash over parenting styles.
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She continued: “The thing is, everybody who has a blended family knows it’s not easy. You can’t pretend that it is.
“And me and Alan sometimes have different views on raising Sienna so trying to co-parent can be challenging. It’s probably like that for a lot of blended families.”