Former professional football scout Graham Carr opened up about his relationship with his son, highlighting the things he doesn’t discuss with The Celebrity Traitors star
Kasra Moradi Senior Sports Journalist
15:31, 22 Oct 2025
Alan Carr is one of the stars of The Celebrity Traitors(Image: Getty)
Alan Carr’s famous dad once revealed he never speaks to The Celebrity Traitors star about two topics.
Popular entertainer and TV show host Alan, 49, is currently a contestant on the hit BBC series. Carr has thus far managed to go undetected as one of the Traitors on the show, with only the Faithfuls having been banished so far.
Before his appearance in the new series, the comedian was well known for other TV appearances, such as his own show – Alan Carr: Chatty Man. But many fans might not know that Carr’s dad is famous too – though he admits the pair couldn’t be any more different.
Graham Carr is a successful former professional football scout and manager. He played for Northampton Town in the 1960s as a midfielder and went on to manage the side, as well as the likes of Weymouth, Dagenham & Redbridge and Blackpool, after retiring.
The 80-year-old is perhaps better known for his work as Newcastle’s chief scout, having also worked for Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur before stepping away aged 75. But despite his eye for talent, Carr’s son Alan never showed footballing potential.
Growing up in a football-obsessed house in Weymouth and Northampton, a young Alan went on to work in a call centre and later found his calling as a stand-up on the comedy circuit.
Asked whether the pair ever talk about football, Carr Sr told the Mail in 2020: “Never. He always says, ‘Great, my expert subject…’
“But he’s a good lad, down to earth. There’s no edge to him. He’s quick as well, you know. Laugh a minute. He can make a crack about anything.”
Graham’s interview then took a more serious turn as the topic of Alan’s sexuality came up. He admitted he was not aware of his son’s sexual orientation for a long time, something which “hurt” him as he regrets not being able to protect him more in the past.
He said: “I didn’t know he was gay for a long time, you know, he kept it from us. Looking back, I feel for him. When he went to live in Manchester he got beaten up once or twice, different things.
Graham Carr is the former manager of Northampton Town (Image: Getty Images)
“I wish I could have stuck up for him a bit more, been there to protect him. It hurts you.”
Graham added that Alan’s sexual orientation is still not something that comes up often, saying: “My wife told my younger son, Gary, and they’d known for a little while before me. They said, ‘If Dad doesn’t like it, he can leave!’
“But me and Alan have never really talked about it, we don’t need to. I love him just the same.”
“Growing up, I think a lot of gay men have odd relationships with their dad,” Alan himself admitted to The Mirror. “My dad was the best dad in the world, but I was like an alien in the house.
“I do feel bad because when I started out in stand-up, I talked about dad in my act. My dad’s not an a*******; he’s just an 80s northern football manager who wanted his son to play football.”
