She found fame on Channel 4’s Wife Swap, but starring on the reality TV show wasn’t Lizzy Bardsley’s only stint in the spotlight.
The mother of eight, 52, from Milnrow, Lancashire, served as a controversial figure on the programme in 2003 alongside her then-husband, Mark Bardsley.
Lizzy was such an unforgettable character on the show that clips of her standout moments are doing the rounds online today, entertaining generations who weren’t able to catch the show live on air.
However, in the time since she first appeared in the show, she’s found herself at the forefront of various dramas, both on and off air.
Lizzy used Wife Swap as a springboard to star in other reality television shows, including Bed and Bardsleys and Celebrity Fit Club.
But the television persona didn’t just find herself in controversial situations on screen, but also while the cameras weren’t rolling.
In the years post her television debut, Lizzy split from her husband, was found guilty of child cruelty, and convicted of benefit fraud.
Here, the Daily Mail reveals what happened to the loudmouth mother-of-eight after she starred on Wife Swap.
Lizzy Bardlsey, 52, from Milnrow, Lancashire, rose to fame on Wife Swap, but she was at the centre of many more dramas after starring on the Channel 4 show (pictured in Wife Swap)
Pictured: Lizzy is seen arriving at the Television & Radio Industries Club (TRIC) Awards at Grosvenor House, Park Lane on March 8, 2005 in London
After starring on Wife Swap, Lizzy and Mark Bardsley (pictured) worked on Bed and Bardsleys, a Channel 4 documentary showing them running a Blackpool bed and breakfast for two weeks
While Lizzy hasn’t made any recent appearances in the media, she occasionally updates her followers on her X account, where she describes herself as a, ‘Proud footy mum and footy nana’
In 2003, Channel 4 scored an impressive five million viewers when airing an episode of Wife Swap starring Lizzy.
In the episode, she swapped shoes – and husbands – with mother-of-two Emma Spry, uprooting from her Rochdale council house to a more affluent home in Devon.
Lizzy, who hadn’t worked for over a decade at the time, was made to take up Emma’s office job during filming, while Emma struggled to keep up with life in the Bardsleys’ chaotic home.
The mother of eight lasted just three days before deciding that Spry was planning to sabotage her relationship, the Guardian reported, and ordered that she must leave her Greater Manchester home.
Despite having only a few days’ worth of material, the show proved to entertain the nation, attracting millions of viewers, and it was no doubt in part thanks to Lizzy’s outspoken nature.
In the 44-minute-long episode, Lizzy and her former husband swore a staggering 60 times, The Sun reported, with the reality TV star unafraid of sharing her true thoughts in heated exchanges.
Despite her often-jaw dropping remarks, Lizzy thought she performed positively in the series, and told The Observer, ‘I thought we came across really well. I felt like a little star.’
After finding her place in the limelight, she went on to star in Celebrity Fit Club, where she lost over a stone, starred on The Weakest Link, and posed nude for a Sunday newspaper.
The mother-of-eight (seen in Celebrity Fit Club) said she felt like a ‘little star’ during her time on Wife Swap
But her newfound fame came crashing down as quickly as it came around when a series of scandals about Lizzy became known.
In September 2005, Lizzy was found guilty of being a benefit cheat. She pocketed £3,800 for her various media works while raking in £37,500 a year in state handouts, which sparked outrage around the UK.
Lizzy, then-32, was claiming four different benefits but was also being paid for TV appearances and newspaper and magazine articles. She claimed to have given the cash away to charity or to her family.
But magistrates in Rochdale decided that she should have been aware the extra cash amounted to a change in circumstances and declared the benefits to the Department of Work and Pensions.
She was found guilty of benefit fraud and was made to pay back the £4,879 overpayment, which was taken from her current benefits. Vincent Carr, prosecuting, also asked for £2,500 court costs.
After the verdict, David Chad, defending Lizzy, said she intended to appeal against the court’s decision.
He said she continues to maintain she did not keep any of the cash for her own financial gain but gave it away.
Afterwards anti-fraud minister James Plaskitt said: ‘This is the reality of benefit fraud. Cheats take money intended for the most vulnerable in our society.
Lizzy also starred in Celebrity Fit Club alongside (from L to R) Kym Mazelle, Aldo Zilli, Tina Baker, Andy Fordham, Julie Goodyear and Paul Ross
‘The public rightly get angry about such anti-social behaviour and as with this case, with their support we will track down the fraudsters.’
Then, one year later in 2006, Lizzy was arrested over child cruelty claims. In 2013, she was found guilty.
Lizzy, then-33, had denied the three counts of wilful assault and one of wilful ill-treatment of a child under 16, according to Manchester Evening News.
The prosecution claimed that the mother had punched the child, who remained anonymous, tried to knee him in the groin area, and bit him.
Lizzy’s mother and two sisters testified against her. She claimed that they were ‘jealous and malicious’ of her rise to fame.
Her defence lawyer claimed that there was no evidence from official sources, such as a GP.
She said, ‘I have only lost my temper twice in my life. What people saw on Wife Swap was an extreme situation.’
Things took another turn in 2013 when Lizzy split from her husband Mark after eight years of marriage.
In a joint statement shared by Manchester Evening News, the couple said, ‘Although we have split it is an amicable split.
‘We wish to be left alone to either salvage our marriage or sort out our final dealings, those which must be done.
‘We must be left alone for the sake of our children, who are at the forefront of our minds during this situation.’
But despite all the dramas that came after the show, Lizzy, who has maintained a low profile since the 2010s, told The Daily Mirror in 2009 that she would do it all over again.
She told the outlet, ‘Yes, I’d do it all again because it gave my family so many opportunities.
‘Our marriage was fine when we went on the show but he found the fame hard to deal with. I’m better off without him.’
While Lizzy hasn’t made any recent appearances in the media, she occasionally updates her followers on her X account, where she describes herself as a, ‘Proud footy mum and footy nana’.
