Wife Swap couple fury

21 October 2005

Happy family Trevor, Sharon and Lauren Keddle

A ROMFORD family who starred in TV's Wife Swap programme this week are furious at the distorted way they were portrayed.

Sharon and Trevor Keddle, and their nine-year-old daughter Lauren, of Albert Road, have vowed they will never take part in a TV programme again.

The show, broadcast on Monday, showed Sharon, 43, an unemployed Information Technology manager, as a mouthy, party-animal, said Trevor.

She swapped homes for 10 days with Wilma Toft, a mum from Edinburgh, who came across as shy and retiring.

In the show, Sharon appears to completely disrupt the quiet routine of Mark Toft and his and eight-year-old son Ryan by failing to get him ready for school on time and appeared reluctant and slow to do housework.

She also found their family-focused life such as staying in playing with Ryan and helping him with his homework, frustrating as she wanted to get out to the pub. She also objected to the extra housework expected of her, and that she was only paid £4 a day housekeeping.

Meanwhile, in Romford, Trevor and Lauren found Wilma equally difficult to live with.

They did not understand why Wilma was so horrified that the nine-year-old appeared to be left to cook for her parents and was shown waiting for them outside the pub one evening.

She tried to change this by preparing Lauren's meals, and spending more time with her. But she angered Lauren when she made her wear jeans and T-shirts instead of her usual choice of sparkly clothes and playing video games when she wanted.

The programme ended sensationally with Wilma storming home in a rage after confronting Trevor about spending too much time in the pub and Sharon threw a glass of water over Wilma's head after she criticised Sharon as a mother

Trevor, 47, an electrician, said: "The programme exaggerated many things. We were portrayed as negligent parents and party animals, which we're not.

"I have a drink after work sometimes, and we occasionally go out in the week, but not all the time."

"Wilma did not fit in - she was so dramatic. She made Lauren wear boring clothes and stopped her having fun. Sharon hated living with the Tofts - they were too quiet."

But he admitted the family had learned something from the programme: "We have agreed to spend more time with Lauren.

He said they agreed to take part in the programme when Sharon and Lauren were shopping in Romford in April and they were asked by a Channel Four researcher if they wanted to take part.

The family were paid £500 for taking part and filming their daily routine began in July and the 10-day swap was filmed in August. "We'd never do it again" Trevor said.·