Lydia Bright opens up about her ‘chaotic’ childhood with a mum who fostered over 200 kids… and the surprising reason she hated her name as a child

LYDIA Bright has opened up about her “chaotic” childhood in a house full of foster kids – and revealed why she hated her name as a child.

The Towie star’s mum, Debbie Douglas, has fostered over 200 kids over the last 25 years as well as bring up Lydia and her three siblings.

But, in a special Mother’s Day tribute, Lydia tells Fabulous her “crazy” mum somehow made time for all the kids.

She said: “My mum has bundles of energy and she’s very passionate about children.

“She thrives in organised chaos, she wouldn’t be able to live a normal life. She likes business and craziness, she likes having so much on her plate.

“My childhood was very chaotic, we always had a very busy household.

“My parents used to do short term fostering as well, so the children used to change over quite regularly.

“Sometimes we would have two or three kids in one night and then one would go and another would come – but there were a lot.

“Then there were always social workers there and parents of the children.

“I was used to it because I didn’t know any different, but when I went to friends’ houses I realised that my house was a lot louder than everyone else’s.

“Maybe if my parents started fostering when I was older it would have made a massive difference. But because I was so used to it was just like having a big family.

“At times I might have felt like ‘I wish they would spend more time with me’ that’s your life and you don’t know any different.”

The 28-year-old admits that Debbie’s eccentric ways weren’t always welcome when she was a child.

She said: “I always remember my mum being the crazy mum from school.

“All my friends had normal mums but mine wore different clothes.

“She used to come and pick us up from school in a sari and she always had that crazy hair and iconic red lips.

“She was always very, very loud so I remember my mum being very wacky and very eccentric.

“I used to find it really embarrassing because when you’re younger all you want to do is fit in. All you wish for is to follow the crowd.

“I also longed for a normal name. I hated the fact that my name was Lydia because no one knew how to say it and it was really unusual.

“I just wanted to be like everyone else, and my mum was a bit of hippy and I thought ‘ugh, just be normal.’

“It wasn’t until I got older that I realised how cool it was to be different and individual. Now I love the fact that my mum is so free-spirited and does what she wants.”

Debbie and Lydia’s Dave brought up Lydia, Georgia, 27, Freddie, 20 and Romana, 14, alongside hundreds of foster kids.

Lydia’s foster sister Ellie recently told The Sun that Debbie rescued her from a “dirty drug-fuelled home.”

And Lydia says her mum is a huge inspiration.

“She’s taught us quite a lot,” she said.  “She’s always encouraged all of us to work very hard and that nothing will come if you just sit around.

“My parents have pushed us to get the most out of life, to go traveling and fill our days with lots of exciting things. And to always give back, to do charity work and to help people who are less fortunate than us. “

Lydia, who broke up with long-term love James ‘Arg’ Argent in 2016 and is now single, says her mum will never let her wallow in self-pity if she’s feeling down.

She said: “My mum is one of those people who says ‘brush yourself off and get going again’.

“I’m quite a sensitive person, so sometimes things will really bother me and I need a reality check from my mum because she puts everything into perspective.