The 'Smile' hitmaker reveals that eight-year-old Ethel and seven-year-old Marnie were initially 'really excited' about the COVID-19 outbreak, but are now concerned about lockdown and food.
- Mar 17, 2020
AceShowbiz - Coronavirus concerns just got real for singer Lily Allen - her kids are panicking about the health crisis.
The "Smile" singer shares children Ethel, eight, and Marnie, seven, with ex-husband Sam Cooper, and although they were initially "really excited" about the outbreak of COVID-19, asking lots of questions to stay informed, they are now just worried - and it's starting to upset mum.
Posting an Instagram Live video over the weekend (March 14-15), Lily admitted she felt like a "bad person" for attending the Cheltenham horse racing meeting in England on Friday, adding, "I am just doing what Boris Johnson (U.K. Prime Minister) had told us to do. I thought it was herd immunity or something?"
But Lily explained her eldest daughter, Ethel, is now really taking the pandemic to heart.
"My poor daughter Ethel is at a sleepover and she just called me at 10.30pm. She said, 'Mummy, if they put us into lockdown will I have to stay at her (friend's) house forever?' "
Explaining that she and her family are in "self-isolation", Lily continued, "It is very sad to hear the panic in her voice. It's sad."
And she says the kids are terrified by the sight of empty shelves at local supermarkets as a result of people panic-buying items like toilet paper and canned food.
"Now they are scared," she shared. "They go to the store and there is no food left. It is a legitimate concern for them, well, for all of us but, and we don't really have an explanation for how long it is going to be or when is it going to be over (sic)," the "Lost My Mind" hitmaker shared, admitting she has started to get concerned too.
"With this, I don't know what I'm doing. I have no idea. The whole thing sucks," she said.
And she's even thinking about pulling her kids out of school, posing the question on her Instagram Story timeline: "Does anyone know how to homeschool children? Thanks."
Though many American states and various countries have already shut down schools, bars, clubs, restaurants, entertainment venues and gyms, the U.K. has been slow to follow suit, but at a press conference on Monday night, Johnson finally urged residents to avoid all "non-essential" social contact for 12 weeks. He stopped short of closing schools, however.
He said, "Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact with others and to stop all unnecessary travel. We need people to start working from home where they possibly can. And you should avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues."
The U.K. death toll from the COVID-19 disease reached 55 on Monday. Half of all U.K. cases of the illness have been recorded in London.
