A raw and emotional confession that left the Loose Women panel silent…
Coleen Nolan has delivered a devastating and deeply personal confession on Loose Women, opening up about the abuse her sister suffered at the hands of their father — and the guilt she says she still wrestles with decades later.
The 60-year-old returned to the ITV panel show on Tuesday alongside Kaye Adams, Lisa Riley and Janet Street-Porter, as the group discussed the day’s biggest news stories.
At the start of the episode, the panel reflected on fellow ITV presenter Lorraine Kelly’s emotional interview with Gisèle Pelicot, 73, which aired earlier that morning. Gisèle spoke candidly about the heartbreaking questions she has for her husband after he “destroyed their family” through his crimes.
The conversation prompted Coleen to speak publicly about her own family trauma — and the complex emotions that still surround it.
‘I Found Out Things That Shattered Everything’
Coleen explained that it was not until her late twenties that she learned the truth about what had happened within her family.
“When I got later into my 20s, I found out things about my dad and what had gone on,” she told the panel.
“I won’t go into specifics, but things had happened.”
She described the shock of learning the truth — and how abuse within a family does not only affect the person it happens to, but fractures everyone around them.
“The shock of it, and also how it affects everyone so differently — it splinters out,” she said.
Coleen praised Gisèle Pelicot’s strength, noting how fiercely she protected her daughter, even amid family fractures.
“That’s what you do as a parent. That’s what you do as a child — you start protecting each other.”
‘I Hated Myself for Thinking It’
Coleen then revealed the painful internal conflict she experienced after learning of the abuse.
“What was astonishing for me was finding out things that had happened,” she said.
“And as a grown child, I had this moment where you think: ‘So he didn’t love me then?’”
She paused before adding:
“Then I hated myself for thinking that.”
When Kaye Adams asked why, Coleen explained that she had never personally experienced abuse from her father.
“Nothing happened to me. There was never a moment where I felt uncomfortable,” she said.
“I had a great relationship with my dad.”
That reality, she admitted, has left her carrying a heavy sense of guilt — especially when reflecting publicly on her childhood.
‘I Feel Disloyal for Remembering Him Fondly’
Coleen explained that even today, she struggles with whether she is allowed to share happy memories of her father.
“I’ve only recently put up a photo of me and my mum and dad when I was little,” she said.
“I feel like I’m being disloyal to other family members by doing that.”
She revealed that while some relatives questioned the abuse claims, she never did.
“I believed it,” she said firmly.
“I knew it wouldn’t be said unless it was true. I would never call someone a liar who carried that pain for years.”
She also acknowledged how difficult it can be when an abuser is remembered as a loving parent by some.
“It’s hard to say it out loud — I loved my dad,” she admitted.
“He was a great dad to me. But you feel guilty saying it.”
The Pain That Never Fully Leaves
Coleen confirmed that the abuse her sister Anne suffered at the hands of their father, Tommy Nolan, has been spoken about before — including on Loose Women in 2018.
Tommy, who died in 1998, sexually abused Anne and was also violent towards the sisters and their late mother.
Anne never confronted him before his death, something Coleen said left her sister feeling he had “got away with it”.
“For me, there was more anger when he died than when he was alive,” Coleen said.
“She felt like he never had to face what he did.”
Coleen explained that Anne chose silence out of fear of upsetting the family — a burden that stayed with her for life.
The abuse began after the family moved from Dublin to Blackpool in 1962, when Anne was kept home from school due to illness. She later recalled how her father’s behaviour escalated while her mother was at work.
In 2008, Anne wrote movingly about the lifelong impact of the abuse.
“My father may have invaded my body, but he also invaded my mind,” she said.
“It contaminates every corner of your life. It doesn’t go away. The slate can never be wiped clean.”
‘It Takes Years to Find a Middle Ground’
Coleen concluded by admitting that loving a parent who caused such harm — while honouring the pain of those they hurt — is a “minefield of emotions”.
“I hate what my dad did,” she said.
“But I feel guilty for loving him.”
She added that healing within families fractured by abuse takes time.
“It can take years to come back together and find a middle ground — of what you can feel and what you can say.”
