The longstanding feud between Jeff Brazier and Jackiey Budden is back in the headlines this week after Jeff’s reported split from wife Kate.
This week (November 24), it was reported that Jeff and Kate had decided to separate following “the year from hell”. According to reports, Kate moved out of the family home earlier this month.
And one person who hasn’t been shy in speaking out is Jade Goody’s mum Jackiey. She has been embroiled in a feud with Jeff since her daughter died back in 2009. And her comments today (November 25) are the latest in a long line of blows traded between Jackiey and Jeff…
Jeff Brazier’s romance with Jade Goody
Jeff Brazier, a TV presenter, and Jade Goody, a former Big Brother star, were together for about two years. During this time, Jade gave birth to their two sons – Bobby (born in 2003) and Freddy (born in 2004).
Jade died in 2009 from cervical cancer, leaving Jeff as the boys’ primary guardian. From the beginning, Jackiey vowed to remain involved in her grandsons’ lives. She had played a significant role in their early upbringing while Jade was ill.
However, tensions between Jeff and Jackiey soon arose. This was reportedly due to concerns over her lifestyle and the influence she might have on the boys. According to sources, Jeff was also unhappy about Jackiey’s closeness to Jade’s widower, Jack Tweed.
He disapproved of some of her choices, too, including gifting the boys phones and a hamster without consulting him. Smoking around the boys was another reported issue.
Jade’s ‘missing’ fortune
Another source of tension has been the mystery surrounding Jade Goody’s fortune.
Before her death, Jade worked to secure a future for her sons. Upon her death, she reportedly left an estimated £3 million in a trust. However, due to a £1.8 million tax bill and other financial complications, much of the money dwindled away.
Jackiey, who was left £10,000 in the will, expressed her confusion over the missing funds.
Jack Tweed, Jade’s widower, has also questioned where the money went.
“Something doesn’t add up. I probably should have been more involved with the money situation… But it didn’t feel right for me to get involved at the time,” he told The Sun.
Jeff on wish to ‘work together’ with Jackiey
Writing for the Huffington Post back in 2012, Jeff addressed the problems he had when the boys went to spend the weekend with Jackiey.
“I got a phone call from an excitable Freddy telling me he was now the proud owner of a hamster! Great, I feel I have more responsibility than I really know what to do with as it is, let alone introducing a pet into the equation. As I explained to Jackie, it would have been nice to have been asked because now I’ve been put into a position where I have to be the mean parent who says no and ruins the fun.
“This has happened before with mobile phones. A year ago she got them a phone each so she could have direct contact with them both. I don’t remember being asked if I minded on that occasion either. I understand she wants direct contact, but they are just too young to be carrying these things around responsibly so we keep them to the house.”
He added that he wished he and Jackiey “could work together a little better”.
Jackiey hits out at Jeff
Jackiey’s anger towards Jeff has often spilled over into foul-mouthed rants, though. Following the 2023 National Television Awards, Jackiey was heard calling Jeff the C-word multiple times.
Speaking about being ‘banned’ from watching Bobby perform during his time on Strictly Come Dancing, Jackiey said: “He’s incredible [Bobby]. They didn’t know I was there. I didn’t allow them to know I was there. I didn’t want to see their dad. He’s a [bleep].
“But I’m going to wait until they’re older before I let rip,” she allegedly told bystanders at the NTAs.
In her eyes, Jeff’s strict boundaries have kept her away from her grandsons. Jackiey later admitted to making the comments, expressing no regrets. “I haven’t got a problem with [calling him that]. He’s been a [bleep] for [bleeping] nine years. Bobby doesn’t need that stress on his head,” she told the Daily Mail.
Bobby ‘stuck’ in the middle
Bobby Brazier reportedly found himself “stuck” in the middle between his dad and his nan, struggling to balance his relationship with both.
In a 2021 Instagram video, he revealed that he had reconnected with Jackiey after a long period of estrangement. “I didn’t see her for ages – for way too long – but I went to see her twice recently. If there’s one woman you shouldn’t underestimate, it’s my nan,” he said at the time.
Sources at the time also claimed that the ongoing feud had placed a “dark cloud” over the family, affecting Bobby’s emotional wellbeing. An insider alleged to New!: “The feud between Jackiey and Jeff is really hurtful for Bobby… He feels really caught in the middle but Jeff is his dad, after all.”
Jackiey hits out again
The rift between Jeff and Jackiey showed no signs of healing when, in February 2024, Jackiey hit out at Jeff again regarding her relationship with Bobby.
“The boys live with Jeff, so Bobby feels like he has to do what Jeff wants. I get it,” she complained to the Daily Mail.
When asked about Jeff, she responded: “We don’t get on. We are very different, but I have been there for those boys since they were born.”
She also expressed a desire to repair her relationship with Bobby, hoping that once he moves out of Jeff’s house, they might be able to reconnect. “I miss Bobby and hope that maybe once he moves out… we can go back to how we used to be,” she mused.
Freddy’s rift with Jeff
After that, reports of a rift between Jeff and youngest son Freddy emerged. And, after rows and cross words, Freddy reportedly sought comfort from his nan – something said to infuriate Jeff.
“Freddy will often turn up on the doorstep. Sometimes very unhappy, and wanting to see his nan. Jeff is furious at the idea that Freddy goes to her house after they have a row. He is cross at the idea of him going to seek solace there,” said a source in August 2024.
“He and Jeff often argue, the rows can be bad, things go really, really pear-shaped between them and that’s it, he leaves. Freddy has got so much love to give but he doesn’t feel like he gets it back off of his father.”
Freddy is also said to enjoy spending time with Jade’s widower Jack Tweed, which was indicated to be another wedge in his relationship with his dad.
Jeff’s ‘legal action’
Back in the spring, new reports came to light over the breakdown of Jeff’s relationship with Jackiey. It was claimed that Jeff was taking action to legally block contact between Freddy and Jackiey in a bid to “keep him safe”.
“This is something Jeff and anyone who cares about Freddy hopes will help keep Freddy safe from a relationship that has been incredibly detrimental to his well being for a long time now,” a source alleged to The Sun.
“The fact that he is going down this route shows how concerned we all are and how our efforts to keep Fred safe are being grossly undermined by other people.”
Hours later, Jackiey had her say. Speaking to MailOnline, she said: “I know what this is all about. It [the situation with Jeff] doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. Do I want to see Freddy? Of course I do. I see Freddy all of the time – I will see him,” she then added defiantly.
One of Jackiey’s neighbours also added: “I feel sorry for Jackiey. She’s been through so much. It’s a complex situation. I just hope they can be all together again as a family. Her grandchildren mean the world to her. How did it come to this that lawyers are apparently involved? She wants to be the best gran she can be to those boys.”
However, this week, Jackiey alleged: “That was a load of garbage. He’s never served papers. He’s full of [bleep].”
Freddy Brazier speaks out
At the time, the distance between Jeff and Freddy appeared to grow. Freddy – who is due to become a first-time dad next year – spoke out.
After staying at his grandmother’s house, Freddy launched a podcast, and dropped more than a few truth bombs about their relationship.
He claimed Jackiey was the person who got him “hooked” on drugs. Freddy also said he spent many years scared that Jackie would take her own life if he didn’t “prioritise” their relationship.
“I feel like if I didn’t prioritise the relationship with my mum’s mum Jackiey, and I didn’t feel like I had to be around for her, I was scared that if I wasn’t, she’d kill herself,” Freddy claimed.
He added he had the fear in his “head for so long to the point where I pushed my dad away”. As a result, he would “stay at my nan’s for months” and “go on mad ones”.
‘Doing our best to cope’
April 2025 saw Jeff admitting that he and the boys “needed” Jade and commented that the trio were “doing their best to cope”. His comments came amid Freddy’s mental health issues.
“To lose the mother of your children is a huge trauma that, of course, shapes your life. It comes down to the fact that we need her.”
The TV star then continued. “It’s not just about missing her — we need her as a mother at the moment, and we always have done, in all honesty. I think sometimes it’s termed that she is missed and we’re doing our best to cope.”
Jeff Brazier directly addresses feud with Jackiey Budden
Around the same time, Jeff also addressed his rift with Jackiey.
Talking to Radio Times, he insisted that taking part in a televised spiritual pilgrimage for the BBC had not changed his mind about his feud with Jackiey. “You could leave me on a hilltop for two years and I would not see it differently,” Jeff said.
Jackiey hits out following Jeff’s ‘marriage split’
Now, speaking to the Mail, Jackiey has spoken out in the wake of reports surrounding Jeff’s supposed split from wife Kate.
She’s accused her former son-in-law of putting his relationship with Kate in front of his relationship with his sons. She’s also said that marrying Kate was “the worst choice Jeff has ever made”.
Jackiey declared: “I am pleased that his marriage is over because it shouldn’t have happened in the first place. So, yes, I am genuinely pleased. Jeff chose to put his relationship with Kate Dwyer ahead of the one he had with his own sons. They’re my grandsons after all….and that’s the root of why Jeff and I don’t really get on.
“When I tried to be involved in the boys’ upbringing he wasn’t interested. Maybe he thought that by marrying Kate that it would make things easier but I always felt that it would not work. I always knew that trouble was brewing there and I was right: they have dated, split up, got back together, married, separated again. If this break is for good this time then he will be better off for it.”
Jackiey went on to add: “Jeff will now have his life back. He will have his family again and the friends he no longer saw. Don’t get me wrong I can’t stand the man, but I’m happy for him because he will have a completely different life now and a happier and healthier one.”
ED! has contacted reps for right of reply.
Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think of this story.