I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! star Martin Kemp became emotional while opening up about a significant moment in his life when he asked a family member for help
Christopher Sharp Trendswatch Reporter
08:00, 16 Nov 2025
Martin Kemp opened up to son Roman
Martin Kemp fought back tears when talking to son Roman Kemp about how his father reacted to his risky decision to leave an apprenticeship behind and try to make it as a musician.
Speaking on Roman’s ‘You About?’ podcast, Martin, 64, who also shares daughter Harleymoon Kemp with wife Shirlie, talked about the moment his father, Frank, wrote him a letter effectively giving him permission to go off and attempt to forge a career in showbusiness.
Recounting the story to his son, Martin explained what happened: “When I was an apprentice compositor in print, my dad wrote the manager a letter when I wanted to leave to be in a band.
“And it said, ‘Dear sir. You have to excuse Martin from his apprenticeship. Will you release him early because he wants to be…. a rockstar?’
“And that wasn’t really about trust, that was about my dad having faith in me and wanting to give me a chance, and not wanting to nail me down in place.”
Martin Kemp(Image: Eamonn M. McCormack, Getty Images for Bauer)
When asked why he couldn’t write the letter himself, Martin replied: “I was only 17 and you can’t because apprenticeships in those days, you are locked in. You are locked in for five years.”
Becoming tearful while talking about his father’s vital assistance at the time, Martin’s voice cracked with emotion, as he realised: “Do you know, I think there was a big bit of my dad that wanted it to come true.
“I’ve told that story so many times, but it’s kind of like every now and again, you realise how important it is. When my dad wrote me that letter we had nothing.”
The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! star went on to explain that due to the family’s financial struggles, Martin could have helped them out with money if he’d continued with the apprenticeship, but his father had faith that he would succeed in music instead.
This isn’t the first time Martin has talked about his father. Earlier this year, the former EastEnders actor and Spandau Ballet star talked about the loss of both his parents in 2009 and how that affected him.
Martin Kemp(Image: ITV/Shutterstock)
Martin lost his mother just 48 hours after he lost his father, and reflected on their lives for a new short film.
Speaking about his parents to The Mail’s Love Sunday magazine, he said: “Both of my parents have passed on now, but I’ve got memories of them and it feels like I can still smell them when I see old clips.
“We had a load of old tapes of the kids and a few Christmases ago, Shirlie bought me a camera that can play them all.
“I hadn’t seen these tapes in years, so I was watching them back through this little lens on the camera with my eye up against it crying my eyes out. It brought back so many of the beautiful memories. That’s the power of capturing these moments. It’s something that mustn’t be taken for granted.”
Martin is competing in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, which starts tonight at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
