The “In the Air Tonight” singer has five children, shared with his wives Andrea Bertorelli, Jill Tavelman and Orianne Cevey
The English singer, 75, has been open about his struggles with alcoholism in the past, especially in the wake of his third divorce, which most recently resulted in him being hospitalized for seven months in 2023 due to damage to his kidneys.
© Getty ImagesHis family members have been open about the difficult period, most notably his daughter Lily Collins, who even penned an open letter to her father concerning his absence during her childhood.
Phil Collins’ holiday family reunion
While the pair were distant during her early years, the 37-year-old actress and her musician father have since reconciled and are now closer than ever. In fact, during an October 2 appearance on Piers Morgan Uncensored, the former Genesis member opened up about his deepening relationship with his children now.
He recalled the family’s “moving” Christmas together last year. “We had lunch together, we had dinner together. After dinner, we all stayed around the table and told stories. It was like what some families do every year, but we’d never done. And it was a monumental thing,” he gushed.
“It was wonderful to hear their stories of how they feared they wouldn’t see me again,” the singer noted with reference to his health struggles and hospitalization, especially mentioning the Emily in Paris actress.
Why Lily “burst into tears” over her father’s health
“Lily, for example, she just burst into tears, because she now has a child and she said, ‘I never thought that my child would get to know her grandfather,’ it was all different levels of different things,” Phil shared.
© Getty ImagesIn January 2025, Lily welcomed a daughter named Tove Jane McDowell with her husband Charlie McDowell. She announced her engagement to the filmmaker in 2020, with the pair tying the knot the following year.
“It was very touching, very moving. We all now have a group chat and it’s for football, it’s for everything. And everybody knows what everybody else is doing. Everybody is supporting each other, giving love,” Phil continued. “It’s like a real family.”
© InstagramAddressing Lily’s open letter to him
Apart from Lily, whom Phil welcomed with his second wife, Jill Tavelman, he is also a father to daughter Joely and son Simon with his first wife Andrea Bertorelli, and shares sons Nicholas and Mathew with his third wife, Orianne Cevey.
Also in the interview, the “Sussudio” singer said that his daughter apparently told him she wishes she hadn’t written her letter to him in her 2017 memoir because it was “hurtful.”
© Getty Images“I know what I did or shouldn’t have done, I treated her mom badly,” Phil told Piers. “I tried to always be there for her whenever…but of course, I wasn’t in control of my own destiny, is one thing.”
