Joe Swash is a doting family man, and despite being beloved by millions of fans, his relationship with his gorgeous brood comes first for the former EastEnders star.
The 41-year-old star regularly shares updates on his home life with wife Stacey Solomon on social media, and the proud parents show off their gorgeous blended family to their devoted followers.
Joe is proud dad to Harry, 16, from a previous relationship, Rex, 4, Rose, 1, and four-month-old baby Belle with the Loose Women star, and is step-dad to Stacey’s two eldest sons, Zachary, 15, and Leighton, 11.
But it’s his relationship with mum Kiffy and foster sibling Daniel that is the focus of the upcoming BBC documentary Joe Swash: Teens In Care.
The TV star has a close bond with his beloved mum, and at his wedding to Stacey in July last year, guests were in tears as Kiffy proudly walked her son down the aisle.
Joe’s dad Ricky died when he was just 11 years old, and on the picture perfect nuptials held at the couple’s Essex mansion Pickle Cottage, his mum stood alongside Joe as he exchanged vows with Stacey.
Kiffy, real name Catherine, was also on hand to help Joe through his darkest days, as he battled depression following his break-up with fiancée Emma Sophocleous.
Joe had no contact with his young son Harry at the time, and locked himself away, leaving his frightened mum banging on the door of his flat “because I didn’t know what he was going to do”.
Kiffy is a long-term foster carer, and has been helping vulnerable children for more than a decade, and was the inspiration behind Joe’s decision to investigate children in foster care for his new documentary.
She began foster caring for Daniel when he was seven years old, and Joe has grown up knowing him as his brother.
“Daniel will be part of our life forever. He's as much part of the family as me,” the former I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here winner sweetly shared.
Joe knew not everyone in the foster care system was “as lucky as Dan” to have found a loving family, so he wanted to explore what really happens “to see how it all works”.
And he’s very proud of the work his mum has done to help at-risk children over the years, and said her job as a foster carer is “never done”.
“My mum's not a rich lady, she's not got loads of money, but she's got loads of love and loads of time and I think that's priceless,” Joe touchingly added.
Joe can also count on famous sister Shana Swash for support, and the siblings have such a close relationship they even played brother and sister on-screen.
The duo played Mickey and Demi on EastEnders back in 2004, and the Miller family caused chaos in Albert Square until their eventual departure in 2008.
Shana spoke about her bond with Joe when he appeared on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! South Africa earlier this year, and said it was “really difficult” to watch footage of her big brother getting upset on TV.
“I suppose they are moments that you probably wouldn't see sometimes, because you need to be in a certain scenario, in a certain place, to be able to have those emotions,” she explained.
“But as a younger sister, it was really difficult to watch it back,” Shana added.
Joe Swash: Teens in Care on Tuesday 11 July at 9pm on BBC One
