A FATHER of twelve has survived a three-day television reality check. Geoff Sherwood, 55, of Toothill, and his wife Angie, 53, took part in the ITV programme Mum's On Strike.

Angie was taken off to a luxury hotel and Geoff was put in charge of the family.

Angie, in the Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel, was spared the scenes of chaos while her husband manfully strove to take her place.

Geoff and Angie have ten children, while Geoff has another two from his first marriage.

He makes light of having to look after his huge family for three days.

But Sarah, 29, Kelly, 28, Toni, 25, Natasha, 24, Nicky, 23, Penny, 22, Kane, 19, Gary, 16, Casey, 15, and Chelsea, 10, were delighted to see their mother again at the end of the experiment.

Geoff, who owns Gangsters Pool Hall in Havelock Street, enjoyed his three days without Angie.

He said: "Most of the time it was a McDonald's here and a Burger King there.

"I did cook one main meal for 12, but it didn't work out too well.

"Actually, it was a bit of a disaster. I did a roast of lamb and chicken. The chicken looked a bit pink so I stuck it in the microwave and it came out really overdone.

"Nobody would eat it so we ended up going for a meal at the Village Tavern."

Even though they have so many children, Geoff jokingly claims his wife's routine is not that difficult.

He said: "My wife, she just shouts at the kids and then watches soaps all day.

"They asked me if I could do without her for three days, and it was a doddle. It's a lot harder running a snooker hall."

Angie had the chance to spoil herself with a bath and massages but she chose to just enjoy the peace.

She said: "I could have been pampered but I just wanted to be left alone. I just read magazines and books and watched television.

"Apparently Geoff didn't do a lot. He did polish a wall unit, but he didn't tidy it up."

Their daughter Penny, 22, a nursery nurse, said: "Nobody ate his roast dinner. Chelsea tried to eat a Yorkshire pudding but her fork broke.

"If he did it again he'd give us all food poisoning.

"I was really looking forward to mum coming back and doing a roast."

The Sherwoods appear on Mum's on Strike on ITV on Wednesday at 2.45pm.

David Andrew