Why I'm having a baby with my GAY BEST FRIEND

With her biological clock ticking, Eleanor Fazan decided on a different journey to motherhood

- ELEANOR FAZAN

I am 41, eight months pregnant with my first child and in the final stages of preparation. If by final preparation you mean: cot not bought, bag not packed, still juggling working full-time with trying to buy a house. Despite the ever-expanding bump straining the fabric of my dress, it’s hard to believe it’s real after so much disappointment and trauma.

I honestly gave up believing I would be here. After years of failed dating and toying with the idea of sperm banks I was coming to terms with a child-free life. But then Eddie agreed to have a child with me: Eddie, my gay best friend.

While being single isn’t exactly a choice, it’s something I’ve learned to embrace. I’ve lived, loved, danced and laughed. And, boy, I’ve dated. From absolute charmers to charisma-free car crashes, I’ve taken a non-discriminatory approach. I’ve had one-night stands and been stood up and stood down – and had my heart broken and broken hearts. When I completed all levels of Tinder, Bumble, Hinge and every other dating app you can think of, I dated women too. Nothing clicked. Everyone swiped.

So I stopped dating, and threw myself into living. But then, COVID. With no work never about ren her’and a period of enforced reflection, I was made to look inwards. And there I found a child-shaped hole. I wanted a baby.

Finding a father