Sue Radford's first pregnancy as a young teen passionately defended by husband Noel

The documentary series 22 Kids and Counting on Channel 5 delves into the bustling lives of the Radford family, led by parents Noel and Sue, who juggle the daily challenges of their large family.

Their extensive family includes children Chris, Sophie, Chloe, Jack, Daniel, Luke, Millie, Katie, James, Ellie, Aimee, Josh, Max, Tillie, Oscar, Casper, Hallie, Phoebe, Archie, Bonnie, and Heidie.

Noel and Sue tied the knot when Sue was just 17 and Noel was 21. At that point, they were already parents to their son Christopher.

The family resides in a converted care home in Morecambe.

Since 1999, they have been running Radford's Pie Company, also known as Faraday's, with some of their children helping out in the family business, reports the Mirror.

For those curious about when Sue Radford had her first child, Christopher, here's what you need to know.

Sue was only 14 and Noel was 18 when they welcomed their first child. Sue fell pregnant at the age of 13.

In their joint book titled 'The Radfords: Making Life Count', the couple candidly discuss their ages at the time Sue first became pregnant.

Their age difference initially caused a stir when it came to light on their TV show, prompting Noel to defend their early start to parenthood.

He wrote: "What happened back then has obviously been brought up again in recent years after we became known by going on television."

"People have inevitably talked about the situation and it has been written about in the newspapers and discussed on social media."

"There has been a lot of focus on it and, in a way, it was probably worse for us than when it actually happened. So many people have given their opinions."

"Some of the comments from people were brutal that I should have been arrested and