Chris and Rosie Ramsey defend criticising their children on hit podcast

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Kelly Rissman

US News Reporter

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Chris and Rosie Ramsey have addressed the negative way they speak about their children on their podcast.

The comedian, 38 and children’s author, 38, who married in July 2014, co-host the award-winning podcast Sh**ged Married Annoyed, during which they routinely speak about the stresses of family life and how their sons, Robin, 8, and Rafe, 3, irritate them.

Listeners of the podcast, which has been downloaded 170 million times since it was first launched in 2019, have routinely questioned the couple publicly dissing their children, which the Ramseys have now claimed is character building for their sons.

Speaking to The Times, Chris claimed the listeners who have a problem with him joking about his sons’ bad behaviour “obviously don’t get us”.

“We love our kids more than anything,” he said. “But it’s that thing: I can slag my kids off, you can’t slag them off, just like I can slag my partner off but my mates can’t.”

Rosie added she’s “not worried” and doesn’t “have any regrets” about the stories she’s told on the podcast, which have even included details of Robin and Rafe’s lavatory habits.

“I’d like to think everybody loves their children more than life itself but it’s really hard,” she explained. “I hope us talking about parenting might make somebody feel a little less guilty about feeling that way.”

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When asked about how their children might feel when listening to Sh**ged Married Annoyed back when they’re older, Chris said: “I’ll tell them how annoying they were long before that.

“I’ll say ‘You were a nightmare, mate. Your mam and I couldn’t have a conversation without you screaming and shouting.’”

He continued: “You can’t grow up just being praised non-stop, you have to have the piss taken out of you. [Praise] is definitely not the way to develop a good sense of humour. The best kind of comedy is self-deprecating.

“I feel you’ll get really well-rounded, funny kids if they’re well loved but they also know that sometimes they’re not the most perfect thing in the whole world.”

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Both from South Shields, Chris and Rosie have been together for more than 10 years after meeting when they were 14. They began dating in 2021 after reuniting in a local nightclub.

Chris was already a working comedian appearing on Strictly and Taskmaster, when his fans encouraged his wife Rosie to join in with his work. She made a great impression during one of Chris’s Facebook live streams and proved so popular among his fans that the pair decided to start working together.

Their podcast was a widespread commercial success, and they released a book in 2020 also titled Sh**ged, Married, Annoyed, which is a funny tell-all on the ups and downs of love, sex, and relationships.

The couple took their podcast on tour, performing to packed-out venues around the UK in 2021 and 2023.

“There’s no secret to our marriage,” Chris previously told the BBC. “We have a laugh,” Rosie added. “And it makes life a little bit more enjoyable, doesn’t it?"