‘Circus’ sours baptism of sextuplets

Press, 14 May 1984, Page 10

‘Circus’ sours baptism of sextuplets

NZPA-PA Liverpool A packed Merseyside church watched in delight yesterday as Britain’s only sextuplets were baptised. The congregation sang and smiled as Hannah, Lucy, Ruth, Sarah, Kate, and Jennifer Walton were cuddled by their godparents through an hour-long service at the Catholic Church of the English Martyrs in Wallasey, Wirral. But a day of joy for the parents, Graham and Janet Walton, was sourced by a row over news media coverage of the service. Father Martin Kehoe, who presided at the baptisms, had reportedly said earlier last week that all photographers would be welcomed into the church. But only one television crew and photographers representing one Sunday newspaper, who have exclusive deals with the family, were allowed into the church yesterday. Reporters were allowed free access, and members of the congregation were not discouraged from taking their own photographs. But a large posse of photographers had to remain outside. Father Kehoe said that that had been done to respect the parents’ wishes. Before the service the six babies were taken through a side-door as photographers and a waiting crowd of about 100 people pushed forward to try to get a glimpse of them. After the service there was a crush as the babies were carried out of the church through the same door into the family’s specially adapted six-cot

car, which had been backed up close to the door. Clearly upset, Mrs Walton, with one of her babies in her arms, yelled, “Stop it,” as photographers and spectators pushed forward. Later a Liverpool solicitor, Rex Makin, who represents the family in negotiations with the news media and advertising interests, said, “Janet didn’t like the idea of being pressed by a surge of photographers with a precious cargo like that.

“We had tried to keep this away from being a threering circus, but the way some of the photographers behaved afterwards was not only absurd but quite unreasonable.”

Friends, relatives and members of the public were joined inside the church by nurses from Liverpool Maternity Hospital, where the six girls were born nearly six months ago.

The gynaecologist, Dr Usama Abdullah, who led the team which delivered the six babies, and his wife were among the six couples charged with the role of godparents. The other godparents were two close friends and eight relatives. Throughout the long service the babies seemed wide awake and interested in the proceedings and there was very little crying. Father Kehoe told how he had known early that Mrs Walton was expecting quintuplets, and that when he heard on television that they had been born, “with another thrown in for good measure,” he had “stood up, waved my hands and cheered.”