KATIE HIND: The FEUD between Kelsey Parker and The Wanted's Max George

After Kelsey Parker’s husband Tom was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour in 2020, at the age of just 32, his bandmates from The Wanted rallied round to support her.

Foremost among them was Max George, the boyband heartthrob who had been at Tom’s side through their late teens and early 20s as they found fame and fortune.

So close were the pair that at Tom’s funeral in April 2022, it was Max who gave a heart-wrenching eulogy, prompting both tears and laughter from mourners including grief-stricken Kelsey – who had become a widow at the age of 31.

Yet three years later, relations between Kelsey – who revealed at the weekend she is expecting a child with new boyfriend Will Lindsay – and Max have become ‘strained’, and a secret feud between the pair can be revealed.

Kelsey’s friends have said she has been left ‘deeply hurt’ by Max frequently talking about Tom in public but not visiting her or her two children by her late husband. Those close to her add that Max has ‘disappeared’ from the lives of five-year-old Aurelia and four-year-old Bodhi.

There is speculation that Max has lost interest in 34-year-old Kelsey as she tries to move on with her life after finding happiness with tree surgeon Will, 27.

But pals say her joy at rebuilding her life has been soured by Max’s behaviour. The singer has even announced plans for a reunion tour to raise money for charity in honour of their late bandmate – without discussing his plans with his widow.

A source close to Kelsey tells me: ‘When Tom died, Max was quick to tell everyone how he planned to always be there for Tom’s wife and children, that he would take care of them and look after them.

‘There was no reason to think he didn’t mean it and Kelsey was so grateful. But recently he has disappeared. He doesn’t visit her and the kids and isn’t involved in their lives.

‘Of course, life moves on and people are busy but what is irking for Kelsey is that Max keeps talking about Tom on social media and on TV. Kelsey thinks that the friendship would be of more value if he was on hand a bit more.

‘Actions speak louder than words. To put it quite simply, there’s no love lost between them at all anymore. Kelsey is very hurt that he’s cut himself off. Things are strained.’

The situation is particularly sad given Max’s enduring devotion to his late bandmate. Before he underwent a two-and-a-half-hour heart operation to fit a pacemaker in December, he begged surgeons to avoid his chest tattoo of Tom’s date of birth.

Max has spoken of his grief in a number of social media posts, and while starring on Channel 4 show Scared Of The Dark in 2023, he said: ‘How do you deal with it? There’s no cure for that so you just sort of learn to carry on with your life, I guess. But deal with it – definitely not. I don’t think I’ll ever be okay with it, you know.’

He also paid tribute to the happiness that their friendship has brought him: ‘[In] one of the last things I said to him, I thanked him for making my life so much better than what it ever could have been, you know, like that whole journey through being in the band.

‘He was my best friend,’ he added, before he began to cry.’

In another chat he revealed that he still sends text messages to Tom’s number. He regularly posts emotional photographs of the pair together, particularly at anniversaries and key moments, but he has yet to comment on Kelsey’s pregnancy news.

‘It seems a little bit sad that Max hasn’t said anything in public,’ says my source. ‘He discusses other milestones often.’

Cracks in their once-close relationship first emerged in a documentary series broadcast in 2022, where Kelsey was shown to be upset by a text message from the singer.

In tearful scenes aired by ITV, Kelsey explained: ‘Max George has messaged me saying: “How are you coping Kels?”

‘But messages like that I just think, “What do you want me to say? How am I coping?”

‘How are you coping Max? Like obviously he is doing it because he does genuinely care how I am coping. But what do you put? How are you coping?’

Things, I’m told, have gradually worsened.

Yet, as she explained in an interview last week, Kelsey remains incredibly close to Tom’s family, including his mum Noreen, who was thrilled by the news that she was expecting.

‘She gave me her blessing instantly, she can’t wait to have another grandchild. All I care about is that both our families and Tom’s family are happy.

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And then, of course, there is the matter of how Kelsey’s new boyfriend Will copes with it all.

‘Will once said he never wants me to not talk about Tom. He talks about him and loves hearing stories about him. There’s a massive picture of Tom upstairs. He walked past it once, smiled at me and went, ‘Oh, he’s handsome though, isn’t he?!’

Will is open about the pop star’s enduring presence in their lives: ‘Tom was a massive part of Kelsey’s life – they were together for over 13 years, and had two beautiful children. So it’s normal to talk about him a lot. I think it would be weird if we didn’t.’

Yet, as one friend of Kelsey’s friends puts it, when it comes to conversations about her late husband: ‘It would be lovely if she and Max could talk about Tom in private rather than her reading about it all online. It’s so sad.’