Jonathan Ross denies he was ‘instigator’ of daughter Honey’s teen diet

Jonathan Ross has denied accusations that he and his wife Jane were ‘instigators’ of their daughter Honey’s diet as a teenager.

The chat show host, 63, insisted that he and wife Jane, 53, had taken ‘our cues from Honey’ and that when their daughter, now 27, had wanted to stop the diet, they had supported her decision.

In 2020, Honey said that her parents had presented her with ‘absolutely toxic’ diets, after she struggled with body issues as a teen.

The writer and activist said she ‘hated her body’ and that her parents ‘tried to give her solutions to her problem’ which was to ‘lose weight.’

But in a joint interview with the Times last week, Jonathan pushed back at the insinuation that he and Jane had tried to control Honey’s diet.

Jonathan Ross has denied accusations that he and his wife Jane were ‘instigators’ of their daughter Honey’s diet as a teenager (pictured together in 2017)

The chat show host, 63, insisted that he and wife Jane, 53, had taken ‘our cues from Honey’ and that when their daughter, now 27, had wanted to stop the diet, they had supported her decision (Honey pictured)

In 2020, Honey said that her parents had presented her with ‘absolutely toxic’ diets, after she struggled with body issues as a teen (pictured in 2014)

He said: ‘Honey did struggle at school because we found out she was severely dyslexic. She also developed some body issues when she very young and we could see it was making her unhappy. 

‘She talked about getting fitter and going on a diet, which Jane and I tried to help her with. Crucially, though, the minute that Honey said she wanted to stop the diet, we said, “Great!” 

‘Some of the headlines have hinted that we were the instigators of the diet, but we took our cues from Honey. We loved her dearly and we wanted her to be happy.’

Honey is now a body positive campaigner, and regularly shares stunning photos showing off her curves online.

Jonathan said that it was her decision to share the photos online and added: ‘Did I talk to her about the dangers of being in the spotlight? Absolutely not! She’s a smart adult, old enough to make her own decisions and her own mistakes.’

Meanwhile, Honey herself cleared up the claims about her parents’ response to her confidence issues in her teens, walking back her previous comments and praising her ‘wonderful’ father for helping her become ‘happy with my body’.

She said: ‘I’m not a parent, but know that it’s not easy. When I went through the phase of hating my body Mum and Dad were the first people I spoke to. Even when I turned into a feminist in my teens, Dad supported everything I did. “Yes, dear, I’ll sign up for your campaign.” 

‘You might ask, after all we’ve been through as a family, why I choose to put myself out there on Instagram: pictures of a size-18 girl in a bikini. Because at 27, I feel happy with my body. 

The writer and activist said she ‘hated her body’ and that her parents ‘tried to give her solutions to her problem’ which was to ‘ lose weight’ (pictured with sister Betty, Jonathan and brother Harvey in 2010)

But in a joint interview with the Times last week, Jonathan pushed back at the insinuation that he and Jane had tried to control Honey’s diet (pictured with Honey in 2019)

Honey is now a body positive campaigner, and regularly shares stunning photos showing off her curves online.

Honey herself cleared up the claims about her parents’ response to her confidence issues in her teens, walking back her previous comments and praising her ‘wonderful’ father for helping her become ‘happy with my body’

‘Sure, I still have bad days, but Dad helped me see that I don’t have to listen to all the nastiness. He helped me understand that these things don’t matter. As a father he has been everything I’ve ever wanted. A wonderful man with a heart of gold.’

Honey made the previous claims about her mum and dad during an appearance on Loose Women in August 2020, as she urged parents not to ‘shame’ their children.

Explaining her struggle to have a positive body image, she said: ‘From a young age, I felt I didn’t have any control over my image. 

‘I felt I didn’t have a place to carve out my own identity. I found Instagram and I was like, I can express myself and show people who I really am. It was a way for me to figure myself out better. 

She then continued: ‘I have parents who were raised in the same society as all of us. They saw me, a teenage girl coming home saying, I hate my body. 

‘They tried to give me solutions to a problem I brought to them, which was to lose weight. They presented me with diets and diets, as we know, don’t work and are absolutely toxic.

‘My advice to parents is keep that as far away from your children as possible, if you want them to have a good relationship with food and their bodies growing up do not shame them.’

Honey made the previous claims about her mum and dad during an appearance on Loose Women in August 2020, as she urged parents not to ‘shame’ their children (pictured)