‘We were outcasts’: Peter Andre on growing up as a Greek Cypriot in Australia

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Singer, Peter Andre, has opened up about growing up in Australia with Greek Cypriot parents and suffering racism as a kid.

In an interview with The Guardian, Andre detailed how his family moved to the Gold Coast in Australia from England when he was six years old, but it was a tough experience.

“We were the only ethnic family there, so we were outcasts. I got beaten, because I stood out like a sore thumb,” he said in the interview.

The 49-year-old goes on to describe how this racism played a role in the breakdown he experienced in his late 20s.

Peter Andre has always been very close to his parents.

“I think a lot of it had to do with the hatred thrown at us, and being too scared to tell Mum and Dad because they took us to Australia for a better life. They never knew,” Andre said.

Now, the singer said, he doesn’t take anything for granted and he acknowledged that “Australia’s a very different place today.”

“It’s multicultural. I think people do change,” Andre said. “I love it with all my heart.”

READ MORE: Peter Andre details his experience with racial abuse growing up in Australia with Greek parents.

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