British TV star Emily Atack’s recent pregnancy announcement has been overshadowed by chatter around who the father is.
The 34-year-old comic actress, best known for her role in The Inbetweeners, recently revealed that she was five months pregnant and feeling “so happy and utterly terrified”.
Fans flocked to congratulate the popular actress, who had asked her followers to “go easy” during her first pregnancy.
Stream the world’s best reality, entertainment and true crime shows for free on 7Bravo on 7plus >>
On Thursday, it emerged the father is scientist Alistair Garner, her so-called “step-cousin”, as first reported by The Sun.
Garner is the son of Atack’s late uncle, Dr Stephen Garner, who married her aunt Jane Robbins in 1994.
The couple is not blood-related — Garner became her cousin through marriage — but the pair have known each other from a young age.
They have not gone “Instagram official” yet, but media UK outlets reported that they were spotted holding hands in September 2023.
If Atack was worried that fans might baulk at the idea of her having a child with her uncle’s son, it seems she needn’t have worried.
“No such thing as step-cousins — they aren’t related,” one fan wrote on social media after news of the baby’s father emerged.
“Sorry, but you’re just making names up now,” another fan wrote when The Sun referred to Garner as her “step-cousin”.
“There’s no such thing as step-cousins.
“Are not blood related.
“Leave this woman alone.”
Atack and Garner are believed to have started dating in the past 12 months, but have “always been close” as adults, a source told The MailOnline.
“(The pregnancy) was unexpected, but their family is delighted for them,” the source added.
“They make a great couple and everybody is excited about their new arrival.”
In her pregnancy announcement, Atack said each day was “mixed with thrill, fear, joy, hysteria,” adding that there had been “a lot of vomiting”.
“I’ve got to know my body on such an insane level,” she wrote.
“It’s made me appreciate the one I’ve been given SO much, I’m doing my absolute best to make it a home for the little squid I’m growing.
“We can already sense the baby is reclined on a mattress of peanut butter and jam sandwiches in there, demanding more chocolate buttons.
“I’m so happy to be writing all of this to you all.
“You’ve always stuck by me through the years, do stick around to watch me enter my mum era.
“Let’s go!”
After receiving an influx of congratulatory messages, the actress thanked her fans and followers for their support.
“Overwhelmed with all of your messages of support about our bubba,” she wrote, sharing a picture of her baby belly.
“I’m stuck at home very sick so your kind messages really do cheer me up.
“So do M&S (Marks & Spencer) ginger biscuits, turns out.”
Alistair Garner is an aerospace and nuclear applications specialist who worked as a lecturer at the University of Manchester, Metro UK reports.
According to his LinkedIn profile, he now works as a senior consultant for Jacobs, a large American company.
Atack has been famous in the UK since the mid-2000s.
Apart from her role on The Inbetweeners, Atack has also appeared in shows such as Heartbeat, Me and Mrs Jones, The Keith Lemon Sketch Show and Father Brown.
She’s also become a reality TV regular, appearing on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, Dancing on Ice and Celebrity Catchphrase.
For more engaging celebrity content, visit 7Life on Facebook.
