Maura Higgins has admitted she ‘never forgave’ her dad after a ‘horrendous’ phone call from him left her unable to breathe.
The model, 33, detailed their estranged relationship in a new interview on Tuesday, revealing how she hasn’t spoken to him ‘for a few years.’
Maura grew up in Ballymahon, County Longford, Ireland, her parents Sharon and Seamus divorced when she was younger, but her relationship with her father soured further when she went on Love Island in 2019.
Speaking with Paul C Brunson’s on his We Need To Talk podcast, she explained: ‘It’s kind of weird. We haven’t spoken in a few years now.
‘My dad spoke to me not very nice. I’m not saying it was just a bit of an argument. It was horrendous where I physically couldn’t breathe after the phone call.’
Maura Higgins has admitted she ‘never forgave’ her dad after an ‘horrendous’ phone call from him left her unable to breathe
The model, 33, detailed their estranged relationship in a new interview on Tuesday, revealing how she hasn’t spoken to him ‘for a few years’ (pictured with her dad, mum and sisters)
Maura continued: ‘I thought to myself, “I wouldn’t let a partner talk to me like that. I wouldn’t let a friend talk to me like that. I’m not going to let my dad talk to me like that”.
‘But also, I think if I dig deep, I don’t think I’ve ever forgiven my dad for not being there for me when my best friend passed away. And he wasn’t there for me.’
Her close friend Andrew Rowan tragically died aged 26 when his motorbike was involved in a crash with three cars in Co Athlone, Ireland in 2017.
She continued: ‘I know my father struggled in the divorce too but he just did things that just was not…’
Paul added: ‘Not what a father should do.’
Elsewhere in the chat, Maura broke down in tears and admitted she ‘didn’t want to be here’ after her sudden Love Island fame.
The model, who starred on the ITV dating series in 2019, said she suffered with ‘dark thoughts’ after being ‘dropped’ in London from her native Ireland.
In the emotional interview Maura recalled the ‘very scary’ period in her life which saw her thrust into the public eye with no one she could trust.
Maura grew up in Ballymahon, County Longford, Ireland, her parents Sharon and Seamus divorced but her relationship with her father soured further when she went on Love Island (pictured on Love Island in 2019)
Speaking with Paul C Brunson’s on his We Need To Talk podcast , she explained: ‘ It’s kind of weird. We haven’t spoken in a few years now. My dad spoke to me not very nice’
Speaking with Paul, she began: ‘Life after Love Island was a very hard time in my life.
‘I was just dropped to the UK. It was like someone just picked me up, dropped me to the UK and I was in the public eye. I had nowhere to live. I had no friends, no family, nobody I could trust.
‘I’ve done everything by myself. I’ve been independent my whole life. But that was a lot. That was scary. Very, very scary.
‘And I remember a lot of times I was faking a smile. Work was so busy. I was getting barely any sleep.
‘I was chased by the paps everywhere I went. I had no clothes. I had a suitcase with just Love Island bikinis that were probably crusty.
‘I had nothing, absolutely nothing. I was living out of a hotel in London because that’s where all my work was and it was way overloaded. There was no break.
‘It was going from one thing to the next, like, to radio to this photo shoot to you’ve signed with brands.’
She admitted: ‘I had a breakdown. I had dark thoughts, very dark thoughts. And it got to a stage where I don’t even think I told my mam. I tell my mum everything. I didn’t tell her how bad it was.
‘I didn’t want to be here anymore. I thought that was going to be the best thing.’
She added: ‘I’m not saying it was just a bit of an argument. It was horrendous where I physically couldn’t breathe after the phone call… I’m not going to let my dad talk to me like that’
Maura added: ‘There was so much expected from me. And because I was there on my own, I was like, “I’ve just nobody to help”.
‘Moving country while being thrown into the public eye is terrifying. I felt so mentally exhausted from just putting on the smile. There were so many things I did that I don’t even remember. I was miserable,’ Maura revealed.
The TV personality, who finished in fourth place on the fifth series of the UK show in 2019, is now the social media ambassador for Love Island USA.
She has since appeared on Dancing on Ice and hosted segments on This Morning.
