Pregnant Ferne McCann has been thrown into a "stressful and surreal" situation following the arrest of her ex-boyfriend in relation to an acid attack in a London nightclub.
Ferne McCann on This Morning
The former 'TOWIE' star made an emotional appearance on 'This Morning' on Thursday morning (11.05.17) to talk about how she has been coping since she discovered she is pregnant with the baby of her former lover Arthur Collins, who was arrested in April and charged with 14 counts of grievous bodily harm with intent and one of throwing corrosive fluid on a person in relation to an acid attack at nightspot Mangle.
A second man, Andre Phoenix, 21, was charged with seven counts of grievous bodily harm in connection with the incident which took place in April.
An emotional Ferne admitted to hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby that the last few weeks had been one of the toughest times of her life.
She said: "It's so nice to be here ... I already feel so emotional, I don't know if it's just sitting on this sofa or that I'm just happy to be back. It has been such a stressful, surreal situation to be in. But I'm actually feeling good and positive. Because I'm pregnant, I think that has given me strength and hope to get through this."
Ferne admits she feared she would get a lot of hate from the public because of what her former lover is alleged to have done but she has actually been overwhelmed by the messages of support she has received.
She shared: "I think being in the public eye, that was a concern for me. I thought to myself, are the public going to judge me? Are they going to have an opinion, which they're entitled to ... I think that was natural feelings to have. However, I actually didn't need to worry. The public have been - [tearfully adding] I want to get my words out - so amazing and so supportive and that is what's got me through.
"Reading through the private messages on Instagram has been so touching and so humbling. That's what I'm so grateful for because everyone's words, from single mothers to single fathers, to people that have followed my career, to people that have never even seen me on TV, everyone has been so supportive and I think that's what gets me the most when people's kindness has just been lovely."
Ferne confirmed she is going to raise her child as a single mother and admits the moment she got to hear her baby's heart beat was just incredible.
She said: "That first scan is the most amazing ... you bond with your baby for the very first time. And seeing it with my own eyes, I was like, 'OK, this is really happening.' "
Of hearing her baby's heartbeat, she added: "It felt like a massive relief because leading up to that point you're like, 'I hope this is going to be OK, I hope everything's OK with the baby.' It's just a magical moment. It's hard to explain it, you're like, 'That's my baby. It's just mental being pregnant, I still can't quite believe it."
Holding back the tears as she admitted the circumstances surrounding the pregnancy were not what she would have hoped for, Ferne said: "This isn't how I imagined my first pregnancy to be. It's not about what happened. It is about this baby. I'm going to be strong, I'm going to try and keep it together ... I really don't want to cry. My main concern and priority is the baby."
Holly tried to reassure the 'This Morning' reporter by telling Ferne, "there's no doubt you'll be an incredible mum".
Phillip ended the interview by insisting on a "group hug" between him, Holly and Ferne and told her to return to work on 'This Morning' when she's ready.
Tagged in Holly Willoughby Phillip Schofield Ferne McCann