FAMILY AFFAIR
How the world’s biggest families are pals – with family-of-22 the Radfords visiting mum-of-16 Jeni Bonnell in Australia
IT'S not easy being some of the world's biggest families - so it's hardly surprising that these mums from Australia, Scotland and England rely on each other for some tips.
In 2016, Britain's biggest family the Radfords flew down under to meet Australia's largest brood with mum Sue - who had just 19 kids at the time - and mum-of-16 Jeni Bonell becoming good pals.
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Ray and Jenny Bonell, from Queensland, have 16 kids between them - now aged between six and 31 years old - and, like the Radfords, share details of their busy family life on .
The bumper brood hosted the Radfords at their family home during their visit when they met for the first time, which appeared in a special episode of 19 Kids and Counting.
With 35 hungry kids to feed between them, the families enjoyed an Aussie-style BBQ, and Noel Radford, now 50, even gifted the parents-of-16 with a tasty Kangaroo pie.
The Radfords, from Morecambe, Lancashire, run a successful family-owned bakery and pie business which is how they get by.
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Surprised, Jenny, now 51, admitted: "That's not something that we would normally eat but...we are keen to give it a go."
While both Jenny and Sue each have different household rules for their family, they're each run with military precision in a bid to stay on top of things.
So it was a treat for the kids to learn how the big brood on the other side of the world go about their day-to-day lives - however similar or different it may be.
Since their visit in 2016, the two families have stayed in touch, and in late 2019, the Radfords had planned a second month-long trip to Australia - this time with a few extra family members.
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They revealed at the time that they'd travel to Toowoomba, Queensland from Sydney to visit the Bonells again - this time the kids would be a few years older.
Speaking at the time, Noel said in a clip on their YouTube channel: "By coincidence today this box arrived from our friends in Australia, the Bonell family who we met three years ago."
"They are one of Australia’s biggest families, they have 16 children, and we still keep in touch."
Unfortunately due to Covid-19 and travel restrictions, the family had to cancel their dream trip which was planned for July last year.
And with ongoing arrival restrictions in Austrlia, it might be some time before the two families meet in person again.
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But it's not just the Bonells who've formed a friendship with Britain's biggest family as Scottish locals and family-of-15 the Hanns have too.
Emma and Roy Hann, both 50, are proud parents to 13 children aged between five and 28 – with ten still living under their roof.
Like the Radfords who featured in Chanel 4's TV series, Emma and Roy Hann, from Dundee, showcased their own stretched-to-the-limits family life with 13 kids on the telly programme.
It was this claim to fame and the everyday stresses of running a busy household that led to the two mums, Emma and Sue, to meet around the same time.
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The two families became close - perhaps because of a mutual understanding of what it's like to be a part of a huge family unit - and they went on to plan a joint camping trip, reports.
Speaking at the time, Emma said: “We don’t have a lot of outside interests because we’re so busy all the time so it’s great to be in touch with other people who are in the same situation.
“We’re all planning a camping holiday together. It’s definitely been a worthwhile experience for us.”
Sue Radford revealed earlier this year that's she's spent almost 16-and-a-half years being pregnant, while Australian mum Jeni has been expecting for about 10.
Although she has just 16 kids, the broody mum, sadly, had a few miscarriages along the way - but is still open to having more kids.
Full-time mum Emma matches Jenni with about 10 years being pregnant, with her eldest aged 28 - so the mums have more in common then some might think.
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