Sue Radford ‘up at 5am’ booking ‘surprise’ summer trip for 22 kids & is ‘jealous’ of families who start holidays sooner
THE summer holidays can be a busy time when you have kids – but mum-of-22 Sue Radford says she can’t wait for their schools to break up.
Sue, 49, who is mum to Britain’s biggest family, told fans she was up at 5am booking a “surprise” trip for her kids over the summer.
And not only that, she admitted she is envious of other families who break up sooner.
Sue wrote: “So jealous of some of you finishing school in the next few weeks.
“I can’t wait for our summer holidays.
“I was up at 5am yesterday morning booking activities in for our summer trip and it was crazy how fast things booked up.
“Noel thought I was crazy setting the alarm in for that time as he was still snoring his head off.”
Sue asked followers where they were going for their summer trips, but remained tight-lipped on where the Radfords will be visiting.
The Lancashire-based mum explained: “The kids know the destination but have no idea what we are doing for some of this holiday.
“Can’t give too much away as they don’t have a clue.”
The Radford family, who are stars of Channel 5’s 22 Kids and Counting, often head off on fun-filled trips in their school holidays.
Sue and Noel support their bumper brood with their pie shop business, and don’t rely on benefits.
Sue previously launched an extraordinary rant at a troll on Instagram, after she was accused of using “taxpayer money” to fund the family’s frequent holidays.
Critics have questioned the family’s jet-setting lifestyle, with the Radfords splashing out on 24 holidays in the last two years alone.
They even splashed out on their “dream motorhome” in 2022 for staycations.
But Morecambe-based Sue has defended their lavish trips to Disneyland parks, New York, Centre Parcs and the Maldives.
“We don’t claim benefits, the pie company is very successful and so is our media business,” she penned.
“We work hard but we’re not millionaires!
“The nastiness is upsetting though.
Who's who in the Radford family?
The Radfords are Britain's biggest family with 22 children.
Here are the kids from eldest to youngest include:
- Chris – born May 7, 1989
- Sophie – born December 13, 1993
- Chloe – born July 31, 1995
- Jack – born April 9, 1997
- Daniel – born March 3, 1999
- Luke – born October 1, 2000
- Millie Radford – born August 29, 2001
- Katie – born November 14, 2002
- James – born October 17, 2003
- Ellie – born May 6, 2005
- Aimee – born April 21, 2006
- Josh – born July 3, 2007
- Max – born December 11, 2008
- Tillie – born May 2, 2010
- Oscar – born October 22, 2011
- Casper, – born October 3, 2012
- Hallie – born June 3, 2015
- Phoebe – born July 24, 2016
- Archie – born September 18, 2017
- Bonnie – born November 6, 2018
- Heidie – born April 3, 2020
“We just want to be able to give our children the best possible life.”
When asked what she found tricky about being a large family, Sue previously said: “I think it’s like planning holidays and going out on day trips and stuff and making sure everybody is all together.
Sue and Noel are parents to Chris, 35, Sophie, 30, Chloe, 28, Jack, 27, Daniel, 25, Luke, 23, Millie, 22, Katie, 21, James, 20, Ellie, 19, Aimee, 18, Josh, 16, Max, 15, Tillie, 14, Oscar, 12, Casper, 11, Hallie, nine, Phoebe, seven, Archie, six, Bonnie, five and Heidie, four.
Sadly the couple’s 17th child Alfie was still born on July 6, 2014.
The busy mum who lives with her family in Morecambe, has revealed her budgeting hacks that help keep her family’s finances under control.
Sue said: “When it comes to food I try to shop around – different shops and supermarkets.”
Not only this, but Sue explained that the key to keeping the costs down for her family is to shop every day, rather than doing a huge weekly shop.