JENNA HOWE was just seven years old when her dad plonked her on a set of scales in front of a friend in a crushing act of ridicule.
The beautician grew up being mocked by her father, Roger Howe, for being “too fat” to take tap- dancing lessons and too heavy to follow her teenage dreams of becoming a singer.
Daughter Jenna Howe was left out of her dad’s will[/caption]
Jenna’s estranged dad Roger Howe died in 2020[/caption]
So it is, perhaps, no surprise that when the pirate radio “legend” died aged 55 in a fall from a second-floor window in March 2020, his only daughter was battling bulimia, body dysmorphia, OCD and had struggled with drug addiction.
Yet Roger cruelly cut Jenna, now 37, out of his £1.4million will.
What followed was one of the most extraordinary and toxic family court battles of recent years.
Jenna was eventually awarded £125,000 — including cash for a boob job.
The ex-glamour model, who once appeared in lads’ mag Nuts, today tells how she has been trolled mercilessly on social media after being thrust into the headlines as the woman who fought her family in court for new breasts.
In an exclusive interview, mum-of-two Jenna, 37, said: “This wasn’t all about a boob job — I fought for justice.
“I was only 19 when I had breast surgery and, looking back, it was a massive mistake.
“But I just wanted to feel better about myself.
“I’ve since had two children and they’ve lost a lot of volume, and I have really bad back pain, especially when I carry anything. I need a breast reduction.”
Dad Roger barred his daughter from getting a penny in his will, branding her “lazy, grabbing” and “bad to my parents”.
Instead, he left his fortune to his 86-year-old mum Rosina, his sister Tina Tucker, and her two sons, Ross and Jamie.
Roger, who split from Jenna’s mum when she was aged two, was a huge influence on the pirate radio scene at its peak in the Eighties.
He built up a successful export business, BW Broadcast FM, developing tech for commercial and military clients, and his talents made him a millionaire.
But Jenna had to go to court to get just a fraction of his wealth.
Her £125,000 award, ruled on earlier this year, includes a £75 a week “maintenance” payment for the next decade, money to wipe her debts and £2,000 towards replacement breast implants.
Jenna, from South London, said: “Since the story hit the papers, I’ve been fat-shamed and trolled really badly on social media, with people making horrible comments about my weight and the way I look.
‘Utter disbelief’
“I even got a message saying it was probably me who pushed Dad out the window. That was really upsetting.”
The court case has caused an irreparable split in the Howe family, with Jenna and her mum Nicky on one side and Roger’s mum, sister Tina and nephews on the other.
Roger’s family claim Jenna “didn’t deserve a penny” after he called her lazy and useless.
It’s claimed he also blasted her for doing “nothing but paint her nails” when he gave her work experience at his radio engineering company as a teen.
During her financial battle at Central London County Court, the judge heard how Roger had a “toxic” relationship with his daughter, calling her names and taunting her in a “nasty” way.
By the age of 13, Jenna had developed the eating disorder bulimia, which she said made her father embarrassed.
Jenna’s dad Roger barred his daughter from getting a penny in his will, branding her ‘lazy, grabbing’ and ‘bad to my parents’[/caption]
The judge heard how Roger had a ‘toxic’ relationship with his daughter, calling her names and taunting her in a ‘nasty’ way[/caption]
In court, Jenna’s aunt Tina, who contested her niece’s claim, admitted that Roger had been a “difficult” man at times and described the relationship with his daughter as “quite toxic”.
But she also insisted Jenna “blames everyone for everything — she has never taken responsibility”.
Jenna said her dad’s cruelty saw her life spiral out of control.
Struggling with poor body image, when she was 19 she decided to get breast implants to “help me feel better about myself”.
She went on to model in Nuts!, but quickly realised that instead of boosting her confidence, it made her feel worse.
With her mood so low, her recreational drug use turned into a serious habit and she struggled with crack and heroin addiction.
She eventually became estranged from Roger, insisting it was initially her choice to cut contact.
She said: “Part of taking drugs was self-medicating, the other was trying to get thin. After all, who has ever seen a fat heroin addict?
Part of taking drugs was self-medicating, the other was trying to get thin. After all, who has ever seen a fat heroin addict?
Jenna Howe
“Then I got pregnant with my first child and wanted to get clean.”
Jenna says she felt “utter disbelief” when she discovered her dad had denied her any inheritance, but claimed they had “never spoken much about money”.
She added: “How he could have called me ‘grabbing’, I’ve no idea. It’s not like I was asking him for anything, or that he gave much.”
Jenna started legal proceedings to have the will negated within weeks of her dad dying — a move that deeply upset Roger’s family as she continually texted and messaged them for information.
It landed her in court, where she was hit with a £300 fine for harassment, which Jenna says she finds excruciating after “suffering a breakdown”.
She explained: “I’d never done anything like that before. I don’t think me and dad’s family will ever reconcile after everything that’s happened.”
Jenna’s lawyer, Andrew Bishop, a partner at Rothley Law, told us: “Jenna was with another legal team before us and was told to act quickly, so she had no choice but to take prompt action when it came to her dad’s will.
“Six months from probate, it would have been more difficult for her to make a claim.
“Her case marks a shift in how courts handle claims from estranged adult children, showing that, even if a child is not mentioned in a will, they may still get financial help if they can prove a legitimate need.”
For Jenna, the whole sorry saga has left her feeling “overwhelmingly sad”.
She said: “No matter what’s happened, I still love my dad — and I always will.”
