Christine McGuinness beams with pride and says seeing her former addict father stay clean from heroin ‘feels like a dream’ after decades of suffering

Christine McGuinness beamed with pride as she said it “feels like a dream” to see her former addict father stay free from his heroin habit.

The model, 36, shared a sweet photo with her dad, Johnny, on Instagram on Thursday and revealed he is now “full of life.”

After suffering decades of heartache, Christine has spoken out on social media in recent weeks about her father after he overcame his fatal drug addiction.

Heroin is a Class A drug, meaning it is illegal to possess or sell the substance. Those found in possession of the life-destroying drug could face a prison sentence of up to seven years and also an unlimited fine.

While providing the drug can lead to life behind bars. The drug is highly addictive and can be injected, smoked or snorted and carries the risk of death from overdose.

After suffering decades of heartache, the 36-year-old model has spoken out on social media in recent weeks about her father after he overcame his fatal drug addiction.

Christine’s photo showed the pair grinning from cheek to cheek as they held each other in their arms.

She captioned her post, “My dad makes my heart smile. It still feels like a dream to see him happy and healthy, we just keep laughing together! He is so full of life now, a very proud daughter.”

In February, Christine first shared the happy news about her father when she posted a heartfelt video revealing that Johnny had overcome his heroin addiction after years of struggle.

She shared a montage of his recovery after a four-decade battle with addiction.

Christine opened up to her fans and admitted that she never thought she would say the words about her father being drug free.

The mother-of-three’s heartfelt clip showed the two at different stages of his recovery, as she has watched him struggle with addiction since childhood, which has put a strain on their relationship.

It showed the couple going through tough times when Christine was younger, and gave insight into his recovery and when he finally got clean.

Alongside the honest post, she wrote: ‘For all the times I said what I thought was our final ‘goodbye’. Today was the best Hello…

In February, Christine first shared the happy news about her father when she posted a heartfelt video revealing that Johnny had overcome his heroin addiction after years of struggle.

She shared a montage with her 722,000 followers documenting Johnny’s recovery from addiction

Christine shared insight into her father’s addiction issues and praised him for overcoming his demons

“My dad is the happiest and healthiest I’ve ever seen him, my dad is off heroin. I never thought I would say these words.

‘If you love someone who is recovering, never lose hope, it is never too late. My father is 62, he has been an addict for four decades and now he is a big, strong 16th man! Dad, I’m so proud of you.’

Christine first spoke publicly about her father’s addiction in November 2021, when she admitted that he would inject himself in front of her when she was a teenager.

She took the opportunity to first talk about those struggles in her book Christine McGuinness: A Beautiful Nightmare.

Johnny’s troubles started when she was young, when the model wrote that her mother Joanne left him when Christine crawled over one of his used needles when she was a one-year-old baby.

In an excerpt, the media personality said her father is one of Britain’s longest-living heroin addicts and said he has never met her children.

She wrote: ‘I saw my father injecting heroin. As a teenager I struggled with his addiction. I blamed myself. When I became a mother, I kept thinking about how he chose drugs over his own children.

‘But as I got older I realized it wasn’t such an easy choice for him. Addiction is a disease.”

Joanne moved from Blackpool to Merseyside with Christine and sister Billie-Jo, and despite Johnny’s addiction, Christine said she had a good relationship with her father and loved him very much.

However, the star admitted he has never met her husband Paddy or their children Penelope, Leo, both eight, and Felicity, five, as she is uncomfortable with the thought of them being introduced to an addict.

Christine offered her father the chance to meet Paddy when she asked him to walk her down the aisle at their wedding in 2011.

After decades of heartache, Christine opened up to her fans and admitted she never thought she would say the words about her father being drug free.

Her heartfelt clip showed the two at different stages of his recovery, as she has watched him struggle with addiction since childhood, which has put a strain on their relationship.

He said yes, but then backed out the day she put on her wedding dress, saying he couldn’t make it, so Christine walked down the aisle alone.

Christine said her grandparents have tried to help him and put him in rehab, but she doesn’t think there is any way back at this point.

The star also revealed that doctors previously thought they would have to amputate his leg due to the damage caused over the years by using dirty needles.

She has also been contacted several times by hospitals to warn her that Johnny may die.

Although Christine said she still loves her father, she doesn’t think she will ever be able to respect him.

His absence at key moments in her life made Christine even closer to her mother Joanne.

She wrote, “My mother longed for that relationship to work. It broke her heart. I’m so grateful that she left him and that she got that [us] away.’

Although Christine has a fractured relationship with her father, she has remained close to her mother.

Last year, Joanne was diagnosed with breast cancer, but this summer Christine assured fans that her mother is “doing incredibly well” after completing her breast cancer treatment.

She took to Instagram and posted a photo of her hugging her parent, writing the following note to her followers: “Ma. “Always remember that you are braver than you think, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and love more than you know.”

‘Many of you ask about my mother, she is doing incredibly well, I am so proud of her. The chemotherapy and radiotherapy are over, now it’s time for her to enjoy life!’

FRANK is a support service providing information about drugs, plus advice for people who use drugs. Call the FRANK helpline on 0300 123 66 00.

Johnny’s troubles began when she was young, when the model wrote that her mother Joanne left him when Christine crawled over one of his used needles as a baby.

After decades of working with him and separating him from her children, husband and personal life, the star was pleased to reveal that he is now clean and strong as ’16th man’