'THINKING ABOUT THE BOY I WAS AND THE MAN I'VE BECOME MAKES ME EMOTIONAL'

AHEAD OF HIS NEW DOCUMENTARY, JOE WICKS TALKS EXCLUSIVELY TO OK! ABOUT HOW HIS PARENTS' STRUGGLES WITH OCD AND ADDICTION HELPED SHAPE HIM

-  CHLOE ALEXANDROU

PUSHING FORWARD

He inspired countless families with his lockdown workouts. He's sold over four million books that help people live a healthier lifestyle. And now he's on a mission to raise awareness about the country's mental health crisis. Some call him The Body Coach, others might think he's superman, but when we catch up with Joe Wicks, he's "just Joe".

After a family holiday in Los Angeles, Joe is busy touring the UK to help inspire young people through his love of exercise. We managed to catch up with him for a chat to discuss his new BBC One documentary, Joe Wicks: Facing My Childhood.

Joe, 36, tells us that the honest and raw film was "tough to make". He admits it was originally meant to be about the relationship between mental health and exercise, but morphed into something "much more personal".

Joe and Rosie with daughter Indie and his parents at their 2019 wedding

The hour-long film examines Joe's "chaotic" childhood and looks at the ways his parents' mental health problems and addictions affected him. Joe's dad Gary, 62, was addicted to heroin, while his mum Raquela, 56, lived with an eating disorder and OCD during his tough childhood.

"My mum and I argued a lot because it was so intense with her OCD. We couldn't bring friends over, everything had to be clean and we couldn't make noise. It was like living in an IKEA showroom," he tells us.

He also reveals the extent of his dad's addictions, explaining, "Every time my dad said he was 'popping to the shop for milk', I knew he was going to score heroin because he never came back with milk. I remember being really upset every time he relapsed. I hated how drugs took him away from me."