With Tess Daly and Vernon Kay’s eldest child Phoebe becoming a familiar face on the red carpet, it seems likely that the Strictly Come Dancing presenter’s lookalike daughter will follow in her famous parents’ footsteps.
And insiders say doting mum Tess, 55, wants to be there to support Phoebe, 19, and her sister Amber, 14, in their fledgling careers, but insiders tell Closer that their daughter’s showbiz desires – and Tess’s involvement – is causing some tension between her and husband Vernon.
A source reveals, ‘Phoebe’s undecided but quite wants to enter the world of modelling and pursue a career in the showbiz world, and of course Tess and Vernon are both supportive of anything Phoebe wants to put her mind to. Vernon is championing Phoebe’s goals and has loved having her with him at showbiz events.
‘But while Tess wants to let Phoebe spread her wings and follow her dreams, she’s also petrified about the media storms and scrutiny she could face and just wants to be there to protect her from all of it. She knows all too well what it’s like to deal with the highs and lows of fame and so has been hesitant about backing Phoebe’s dream fully.’
Tess – who was pregnant with Phoebe when presenting the very first series of Strictly in 2004 – has been a household name since rising to fame back in the early 2000s.
But back in 2010, a year after their second daughter Amber was born, radio presenter Vernon, 50, was forced to apologise publicly after it was revealed that he had been ‘sexting’ model Rhian Sugden alongside ‘four or five’ other women.
Vernon said at the time that Tess had been left ‘extremely upset’ by the scandal, adding, ‘I've been an idiot and I've let my family down.’
Tess stood by her husband of 21 years, and has worked hard to present their family as a stable unit in the years since. Yet while Vernon’s appearance with Phoebe at Winter Wonderland last month suggested the student – who is studying film and television at university and has said she would love to act – has her eye on a showbiz career, insiders say Tess can’t help but worry.
The source continues, ‘Vernon is much more laid back than Tess and feels she needs to let the girls make their own way in life. But Tess has suffered a huge amount of humiliation which has been personally debilitating at times, and she would hate for her daughter to go through any of that.’