‘The X Factor’s Anton Stephans has sparked outrage after he allegedly lied about his traumatic childhood in care.
The wannabe singer, 45, previously claimed he was adopted at the age of seven because of his turbulent relationship with his biological parents Kenneth and Pauline, but a close family friend has since rubbished the alleged "sob story."
A source told The Sun newspaper: "Anton wasn’t adopted, if he was he’d have adopted parents.No one knows why he is saying things like that. It’s all rubbish."
The insider added: "He has been telling stories like this for years and it has finally come back to bite him."
And it seems his childhood isn’t the only thing Anton – who goes by several names – has lied about as the University of Cambridge reportedly told the publication it has no record of him ever graduating there, despite him previously claiming he’d left with a double first in English and History.
Meanwhile, Anton previously revealed he had been "seduced" into popping ecstasy pills in the past to help him deal with his emotions and his "scarred" childhood memory.
He said: "I was pushing the self-destruct button. I was hurting and when you are young it’s easy to be seduced.
"But I didn’t know then that drugs are a lie. Have I smoked marijuana? Yes. Have I popped pills? Yes, I have. There’s very little I haven’t done, and I have to own up to doing those things. But do I do them now? Absolutely not."
Anton, who is competing in Simon Cowell’s Over 25s category, had the audience and judges stunned on Saturday night (31.10.15) when he performed his emotional cover of Luther Vandross’ ‘Dance With My Father.’
The X Factor’s Anton Stephans ‘lied’ about his traumatic childhood
