While women have felt the pressure of the ticking ‘biological clock’ for centuries, many have still welcomed pregnancies years after being told they should start thinking about having kids.
This week, Boy Meets World star Trina McGee announced she was pregnant at the age of 54.
Sharing the happy news on social media, the actress asked her followers to ‘bless’ her.
‘At the tender age of 54 I have found myself pregnant. Please bless us with your prayers for a safe delivery. Thank you.’
Trina already has three children, two of whom she shares with her ex-husband Randall Courtland Davis, whom she was married to from 1991–2001, and one from a previous relationship.
She is far from the first celebrity to welcome a child in middle-age, with many others revealing their pregnancies publicly over the years.
Trina McGee, 51
In Boy Meets World, Trina played Angela Moore in the final season of the coming-of-age sitcom, which ran from 1997 until 2000.
She was pregnant with her third child for part of her tenure on the show, reflecting on her experience on Instagram last month: ‘That time I played a teenager but in reality I was 6 months pregnant…’
‘Gonna sign off social media for a bit. Thanks for your prayers and well wishes in advance,’ the accompanying caption on her recent pregnancy announcement read.
Victoria Coren Mitchell, 51
Last year Only Connect host Victoria Coren Mitchell announced she’d welcomed her second child.
The TV host is married to Peep Show actor David Mitchell, with couple are already parents to daughter Barbara Elizabeth June Mitchell, who they welcomed in 2015.
She revealed their new arrival in November after keeping her pregnancy secret.
Posting a photo on social media, she shared a photo of herself in a red cloak and black lacy top, before sharing a tongue-in-cheek message.
‘Many people are assuming my tweet yesterday was a Halloween costume,’ she wrote.
‘Not at all; last week I had a baby and nothing currently fits me except cloaks.’
She added: ‘Luckily, Only Connect is a pre-record. Happy All Saints Day!’
Victoria and David had chosen to keep the pregnancy a secret, and Victoria initially did not reveal any details about their child including their name or sex, however an announcement appeared in The Times which read: ‘MITCHELL – on 26th October 2023 to Victoria and David, a daughter, June Violet sister to Barbara.’
Janet Jackson, 50
In 2016 Janet Jackson, then aged 50, announced she was pregnant with her first child.
After postponing her Unbreakable world tour to ‘plan a family’ it was revealed she was expecting with husband, Qatari businessman Wissam Al Mana, whom she married in 2012.
Their son, Eissa Al Mana, was born in January 2017.
However just a few months later Janet announced she and her husband had separated and were getting a divorce.
Posting a video online she said: ‘Hey, you guys, it’s me, Jan — just in case you don’t recognise me, ’cause I have put on quite a few since I had the baby. But I thank God, I thank God for him, you guys. He is so healthy, so beautiful, so sweet, so loving, such a happy baby.’
She then officially confirmed the split: ‘Yes, I separated from my husband. We are in court and the rest is in God’s hands.’
Two years later the music star admitted it was ‘hard being a working mother’.
‘I don’t have a nanny. I do it all myself. If my mother did it with nine children, there’s no reason I can’t.’
Brigitte Nielsen, 54
In 2017 Danish model, actress and singer Brigitte Nielsen revealed she was pregnant with her fifth child aged 54.
She broke the news on social media and asked fans for ‘positive vibes’ when sharing her family was ‘getting larger’.
After starting out her career as a model, she went on to appear in Rocky IV, Creed II and Beverly Hills Cop II and was married to Sylvester Stallone for two years from 1985.
In June 2018 she gave birth to daughter Frida Dessi, whose father is Italian TV producer Mattia Dessi, whom Brigitte married in 2006.
She also has four sons Julian, Killian, Douglas, and Raoul, who were aged 34, 28, 25 and 23 at the time she was pregnant.
Brigitte was also a housemate on Celebrity Big Brother UK in 2005 appearing alongside her former mother-in-law Jackie Stallone.
Other celebrities who announced their pregnancies in their 40s
Tana Ramsay- 49
Hilary Swank- 48
Laura Linney- 49
Rachel Weisz-48
Geena Davis- 48
Halle Berry- 47
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