Olympic swimmer Adam Peaty and fiancée Holly Ramsay are embroiled in a family feud that reportedly began at their engagement party where guests had to sign NDAs
Adam Peaty is locked in battle with his family, and it was seemingly at the engagement party where everything began to unravel.
With merely one month remaining until their big day, the Olympic swimmer and Holly Ramsay ought to be floating on cloud nine. Yet they’ve become caught up in a bitter row with Adam’s relatives which has spiralled to such a degree, most of his nearest and dearest have been struck off the guest list for the ceremony.
Friction between Adam and his family allegedly kicked off at the pair’s extravagant engagement celebration in London last December, with the Ramsay dynasty and Adam’s now-alienated mum Caroline present.
Reports suggest the bash was captured on camera for Gordon’s behind-the-scenes documentary series, Being Gordon Ramsay. The celebrity chef, 59, was followed for nine months as he launched five fresh restaurants in London, whilst balancing his home life.
Scenes from the programme will show Holly and Adam alongside their families during more harmonious moments. Yet away from the cameras, difficulties were already simmering, reports the Mirror.
A source revealed to the Sun: “Adam’s family were at the engagement party, when relations were much better. Things went downhill from there. His mum was unhappy some of the family weren’t there and confronted Gordon at the event.”
Regarding the stringent regulations, they continued: “Guests were made to sign non-disclosure agreements and hand in phones as the party was filmed.”
In a bombshell interview, mum Caroline revealed her heartbreak over the wider Peaty clan being left out in the cold from the celebrations. She disclosed to the Daily Mail how she messaged Holly, saying: “You know how important family is to you, as it is to me. My sisters are not coming to the party, they have been there all through Adam’s life..
“Adam didn’t take kindly to me sending that message,” she revealed, whilst insisting she reassured Gordon at the bash that “there was nothing horrible in those messages.”
Caroline described how further friction arose over her wish to don a cream frock on the big day. The atmosphere became explosive in the run-up to the hen party, with Caroline finding herself excluded from the festivities.
Adam’s aunt, Louise Williams, publicly slammed Holly for shutting out Caroline, branding the move “divisive and hurtful” – a stance Caroline openly praised her for taking.
An insider close to the Peaty clan has hinted that the rift stems from the clash between their working-class roots and the Ramsay family’s more privileged way of life.
The glamorous celebrity sphere couldn’t be further removed from Adam’s modest beginnings in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, where he was raised as one of four children living on the ‘poverty line’. To help him realise his ambitions, Caroline would rise at 4am to transport Adam the 40 minutes from their house to the swimming facility in Derby.
She would remain for two hours whilst his morning training concluded, drive him back home, grab a swift breakfast, then head off to her full-time role as a nursery manager from 8am to 5pm. Following work, she would then ferry him back to the pool for evening practice sessions, frequently not returning home until 8pm or 10pm.
Adam is remarkably candid about the bitterness he experienced during his childhood. Speaking to The Guardian, he revealed: “That relationship with suffering has driven me since I was a kid. I am working class – but millions of people in this country are also working class. They live paycheck to paycheck and can’t have luxury things.
“I was in a larger family with two brothers and one sister, so you had to fight for what you had and because I was the youngest I always had hand-me-downs. I don’t want to sound too harsh on my parents because they did so much for me.”
Adam and Holly first crossed paths in 2021 on the set of Strictly Come Dancing, where the swimmer competed alongside her younger sibling, Tilly. The couple started their romance in 2023 and revealed their engagement in September 2024.
It’s understood that only Adam’s sister Bethany has received an invitation from the Peaty clan to attend their nuptials. In his statement last week addressing the rift, Adam declared: “Over the past few days, a lot has been reported and comments posted about the private life of Holly and myself.
“My sister Bethany, has also been targeted. This has been almost entirely one-sided and, in many cases, excessive and intrusive. It has been deeply hurtful and upsetting to read, especially given the false basis upon which we have been targeted.
“What makes it worse is that it has been encouraged by members of my family.”
He went on to say: “Bethany, Holly and myself cannot go into detail given an ongoing police investigation into serious matters that arose long before recent events.
“For those who know me personally, you know that I work so hard on trying to improve myself as a person who wants to contribute to making the world a better place. I am continuing to learn about myself and how I can be the man I want to be; a worthy partner, father, businessman, friend and athlete; even through these challenging times.
“Bethany, Holly and I will get through this – we do not ask for sympathy. We just need people to be aware that there are always two sides to every story. To those of you who have reached out and shown kindness and understanding – thank you. It is deeply appreciated.”
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