Presenter Roman Kemp has spoken about how a series of incidents as a child left him upset. Roman, 33, is the son of singers Martin Kemp, 64, and Shirlie Holliman, 64.
As a result of Martin’s position as one of the lead singers of Spandau Ballet and Shirlie’s work with the band Wham! both had a large amount of fame and public recognisability.
It was this fame that Roman said had an impact on him as a child, as it meant that when he and his parents went out, they drew attention from other people that he didn’t necessarily want.
Now a public figure in his own right, The One Show presenter Roman has been reflecting on what fame means to him and how much is too much.
As well as presenting the popular BBC show, he has also appeared on I’m A Celebrity and Celebrity Race Across the World. He also formerly had a show on Capital before he left in 2024.
View 3 ImagesRoman Kemp has spoken about growing up with fame(Image: Getty)
Speaking on the Runna podcast, he opened up about his attitude to fame. “I’ve always been very vocal about my, I guess, my perception of fame,” he said. “I have no want or need for those things.
“I’ve been very fortunate to grow up the way that I have grown up, but also from growing up how I have, it has shown me that sometimes that world isn’t what you should want.
“When we would go for family dinners or whatever, that it used to upset me that other people were looking at our table…I didn’t like the fact that people were coming over to my parents or asking for a picture. I didn’t like it. And I felt like it put us in a different room to everyone else.”
View 3 ImagesRoman Kemp is a renowned presenter in his own right (Image: BBC)
Roman went into more detail afterwards explaining how that if someone’s parents do a certain job, and do it well, then the path into that job is clear. It is down to the child to decide if they want to follow that path.
In Roman’s case, he emphasised the importance not just of doing what you want to do, but knowing when to stop.
Article continues below
He said: “If your parents do a certain job, like you kind of go ‘Okay, I see the pathway. That path is clear for me. Ok. I’m gonna try it. I’m going to go for it’.
“And when you do go down this route, you see, as I say, fame on different levels, and you’ve got to try and realise at what point is it going to change you as a person, and what point are you getting off the train?
“At what point do you go, okay, this is enough? Because it’s not reality, it’s not reality.”