Inheritance row erupts after pirate radio legend’s ‘lazy money grabbing’ daughter cut from £1.4m will
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GB News
A beautician is battling for a share of her late father's £1.4m fortune after the pirate radio legend branded her a "lazy useless, lying druggy" and cut her from his will.
Roger Howe left his entire estate to his elderly mother, sister and two nephews when he changed his will in 2017, expressing "jubilation" at ensuring his daughter Jenna "never gets a penny of mine."
The 37-year-old is now fighting her family at Central London County Court for £443,000 of the inheritance, claiming her father's "callous neglect and cruelty" during her childhood shaped her life.
Howe was a child prodigy who built his first transistor radio aged eight and was creating complex AM and FM transmitters by 15.
The hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice continues
GETTYAt 16, he began making rigs for London pirate radio stations, including the specialist jazz funk station JFM. He went on to build a successful export business, BW Broadcast FM, developing radio technology for both commercial and military clients worldwide.
Howe died aged 55 in March 2020 after falling from a second-floor window in what was described as a "tragic accident."
Jenna told the court she was "teased about her weight" and suffered from bulimia and depression as a teenager, with her father being "not sympathetic to her needs."
"She now recalls several occasions on which he would belittle her, including one where he weighed her in front of a lodger," her barrister James McKean told Judge Mark Raeside KC.
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Her life "spiraled out of control" after she began taking drugs, the court heard. When offered work at her father's company, she claimed the intricate soldering work was beyond her experience, saying: "He criticised me all the time until I had to leave."
A friend testified that Howe had developed "unambiguous hatred" for his only child despite her attempts to reconcile. Jenna is seeking £443,000 as "reasonable provision" from the estate, with plans to spend £315,000 on a home, clear £66,000 in debts, launch her beautician career and buy a car.
Her aunt Tina Tucker strongly opposed the claim, telling the court her niece "blames everyone for everything, she has never taken responsibility."
The relationship became so strained that "you couldn't even mention her name in the house," Tucker testified.
When asked if she had "an axe to grind" against Jenna, Tucker responded: "Have you seen what she has done to my family? Why wouldn't I have an axe to grind?"
Tucker revealed she has already spent £150,000 in legal fees fighting her niece, including a previous challenge over the will that ended in settlement.The estate has reportedly diminished since Howe's death, with Tucker stating "the estate had a lot to deal with."
Despite their troubled relationship, Jenna had "saved for weeks" to buy lavish flowers for her father's funeral and read a poem during the service.
He was buried with a picture of his daughter, the court heard. The hearing at Central London County Court continues.
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