Secret Jamaica heartache Dad of Strictly hopeful David died before he could reunite divided family

Manchester City and earned £20million – but ended up bankrupt in 2014.

But his biggest fan, his dad, barely saw him play. Joy, who runs an art gallery she set up with Joe, recalled: “We went to England when David was 19 and at Watford. From then, though we weren’t in touch, we still followed his career.

“We watched him once on TV when he went to Liverpool and listened to games on the radio. We framed an article in the gallery and people would come past all the time.”

Recalling contact con she and Joe had with Dav David, Joy said: “He came with his children to Jamaica to se see us about 17 years ago. He bought me a bottle tle of Chanel and his dad a bottle of Scotch.

“Joe went to England on his own to his house after that.”

Describing Joe’s illness, Joy said: “He was uncon- scious for six months and d the doctors said he would never ver walk again, but he did.

“He had no pain, never a groan. When we went for a check-up, the doctors told us that that was it. He he was in hospital for 10 days before dying.”

Joy said David did not go to the funeral for Joe, who is buried in a 16thcentury c island graveyard, but insisted i there was no bad blood between the two.

And she said David, who is i a keen artist and even illustrates il children’s books, gets ge his talent from his dad.

She said: “I saw a sketch he did wh when he was at Watford. He’s like his dad. Joe is famous all over the world for his art. I plan to open a museum with unseen pictures he painted.”

Dad-of-four David goes head-to-head with celebs including Anneka Rice and ex-corrie actress Catherine Tyldesley on the series, which pulled in more than 9.5 million viewers last year. David, divorced from wife Tanya and recently split from partner Amanda Salmon, is likely to attract a huge female following.

Joy said she did not believe he will fall victim to the notorious Strictly curse but forecast: “Someone like him will have women throwing themselves at him.”

At Liverpool David was one of the “Spice Boys” with Robbie Fowler and Jamie Redknapp, remembered for wearing white Armani suits at Wembley.

David also modelled for Armani, at one time owned seven homes and reputedly refused to wear socks or underpants more than once. He was capped 53 times for f England and at the 2010 tournament t in South Africa became b the oldest player ever e to make his debut in a World W Cup, at the age of 39.

But he was also nicknamed “Calamity “James” for a string of o embarrassing mistakes.

In 2005 he admitted he had failed fa to prepare properly for a 4-1 defeat of England by Denmark D in which he only played pl the second half but let in all four goals.

Let’s hope he doesn’t fumble the Strictly glitter ball...