Anton Du Beke’s sister has touchingly revealed how their father would drunkenly abuse him for being “gay” and turning against him for his love of dancing.
The 57-year-old Strictly Come Dancing judge has spoken for the first time about being stabbed in the stomach as a child by his alcoholic father on Boxing Day, while his younger sister Veronica gave further details about his troubled childhood.
Vernoica, 53 appears on Kate Garraway’s Life Stories which airs tonight at 9pm on ITV1 and is in the audience as Anton reveals details of the shocking attack at the hands of his father which left him in hospital for three days.
Vernoica tells the program: ‘My father, I don’t think he was that impressed with Anton’s dancing, he always called him gay, he turned against Anton.
“My father’s drinking affected his mood. He was mean. He wasn’t a nice person when he was drunk.’
Heartbreaking: Anton Du Beke’s sister Veronica (pictured) has touchingly revealed how their father would drunkenly abuse him for being ‘gay’ and turned against him for his love of dancing
Ordeal: The 57-year-old Strictly Come Dancing judge has spoken for the first time about how he was stabbed in the stomach as a child by his alcoholic father on Boxing Day
Family: Anon and his sister pictured with their mother Ascension
Speaking of the impact of their dad’s alcoholism on family life, she adds, “My dad drank his money down the toilet so mom worked nights at a nursing home, she wasn’t around the house, she wasn’t there to really help us.” to protect. ‘
Born to a Spanish mother and Hungarian father, Du Beke discovered his flair for dancing after picking up his sister Veronica from a local studio in Sevenoaks, where the family lived on a council estate.
She tells the program: “My mom sent him to take me home because it was getting dark and he came in.”
After dropping out of school without any qualifications so he could pursue a dancing career, Vernoica reveals that Anton’s father insulted him even more.
She tells the programme: ‘My dad put him down for it (dancing), called him gay for doing it, but that would have the effect on him (Anton) that he would want to be the best. He’s not Tony Bek who grew up on a council estate, he’s Anton Du Beke, the showman.’
Anton and Veronica both talk touchingly about the moral and financial support their mother provided to help him become a dancer.
Kate Garraway reveals that Anton’s mother, Ascension, who lives in Spain, would have been in the audience, but was unable to travel due to ill health.
Elsewhere during the interview, Anton revealed that he was stabbed in the stomach and leg by his father as a child on Boxing Day, which left him hospitalized for three days.
Interview: Vernoica, 53 appears on Kate Garraway’s Life Stories airing tonight at 9pm on ITV1 and is in the audience as Anton reveals details of his father’s shocking attack
Family: Anton Du Beke pictured as a baby with his mother Ascension
Anton said, “It came to a head one night. I ended up in the hospital for three days. I was stabbed in the leg and stomach’
Close: Anton and his sister have remained close (pictured together)
The Strictly star said the shocking incident happened while he was living in the family home on a council estate in Sevenoaks, Kent.
The professional dancer added that the revelations are likely to come as a surprise to his friends and family as it is the first time in his “entire life” that he has spoken about it.
Garraway asks him, “Was the violence against you?” Du Beke replies: ‘I, yes. I’ve actually never talked about this in my entire life. I wanted a fresh start, and a new beginning. I mean, I ended up in the hospital for three days, but it was…”
Garraway said, “Did you do that?” Du Beke replied, “Yes.” Garraway then asked, “Why, what happened?” Du Beke said: ‘I am, I have been stabbed. I’ve never said this out loud before.’
After the clip played, Garraway said at the GMB studio, “It was very, very, seriously… physically, medically and obviously emotionally devastating.”
She added, “He’d go on to say how it didn’t work (hold him back) and he’d go on with the triumphs he’s had and the other struggles he’s had along the way.”
‘And that’s the point, isn’t it? That’s the lesson you want young people and other people who may be leading violent, difficult, distressing lives to look at and think ‘well we can move forward and not let it define us’.
Anton had no contact with his father after his parents’ divorce in his early 20s, only hearing about him again after he passed away in 2001.
Discussing the call he received from the coroner’s office, Du Beke admitted that he told them to call back after his mother returned home because he “knew why” they called and didn’t want to talk about it.
He said, “I knew he was going to tell me my father had died and I didn’t care. Or want to know. He was a stranger to me. That sounds a bit harsh and I don’t want to sound like that.’
Actor Omid Djalili and Ruby Wax also spoke with Garraway for this series of Life Stories.
Kate Garraway’s Life Stories airs tonight (Wednesday) at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX