Britney Spears’ ailing father Jamie is back living with his youngest daughter Jamie Lynn at her newly built home in Louisiana, after another failed stint in rehab for alcoholism, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal.
Jamie – whose lengthy battle with booze was first detailed by his ex-wife Lynne in her 2008 book Through the Storm – left rehab in July after completing a 30-day program, according to a Spears family insider, who claims that the father-of-three has since struggled to stay sober.
Jamie, 71, has since been living in a guest house at Jamie Lynn’s property in Hammond, Louisiana, with her husband Jamie Watson and their daughters Ivey, five, and Maddie, 15, the source shared – adding that his drinking has sparked serious concern among his family members.
‘Jamie just got out of rehab, but is already drinking again, which worries Lynne and Jamie Lynn,’ they said.
However, Jamie Lynn’s concerns have not prevented her from allowing her father to get involved with her children, with the insider adding that Jamie has been helping to look after his granddaughter while the Zoey 102 actress was traveling for Dancing With The Stars.
The girls visited their mom for the premiere last week, when Lynne flew them out to LA, but they weren’t on hand to see Jamie Lynn crash out of the competition last night.
‘Jamie was babysitting Ivey while Jamie Lynn competed on Dancing With The Stars with Lynne,’ they shared.
According to the source, Jamie Lynn’s decision to welcome her father into her home has done little to mend her already-fractured relationship with her sister, who they said is ‘extremely bothered’ by the set up.
‘She cannot believe that Jamie is caring for Jamie Lynn’s daughters when he was partially to blame for Britney’s falling out with her two sons.’
The Toxic singer, who previously admitted to being ‘scared of her drunk dad’, has Sean Preston, 18, and Jayden, 17, with her ex-husband Kevin Federline.
However, Britney’s relationship with the boys has become extremely estranged over the years – and neither attended her wedding to ex-husband Sam Asghari. Sean and Jayden are both currently living full-time with their father in Hawaii, having relocated there earlier this year with Kevin’s new wife, Victoria Prince.
Meanwhile, Britney’s relationship with her mother Lynne – who lives in a $2 million Kentucky property owned by her daughter – has once again taken a downturn. In April, the singer reunited with her mother after years of estrangement and it seemed as though they were taking steps to repair their bond.
But the reconciliation was short-lived, with Britney cutting Lynne out of her life again after her estranged husband Sam filed for divorce.
In June, Britney rekindled her broken relationship with sister Jamie Lynn, which has now been fractured once again due, in part, to Jamie Lynn’s decision to allow her father to live with her.
Representatives for Jamie, Jamie Lynn and Britney did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Jamie’s struggle with alcoholism is no secret and has been publicly discussed by his ex-wife Lynne, who recently started work as a substitute teacher to help pay the bills, and their two daughters.
In Lynne’s 2008 memoir Through the Storm, she revealed that her ex-husband’s issues with alcohol started in 1977.
‘Jamie always enjoyed a beer here and there, but he didn’t start drinking heavily until after Bryan was born,’ wrote Lynne, referring to her and Jamie’s eldest child, Brian Spears.
Describing her ex-husband’s behavior she wrote: ‘Cruel words, flung in the heat of the moment, fueled by alcohol’s evil energy.’
She said he was an ‘alcoholic’ who was ‘barely present, supportive or loving,’ towards the end of their marriage. She filed for divorce in 1979, but decided to give him a second chance before they got divorced in 2002.
She said she finally made the decision after ‘years and years of verbal abuse, abandonment [and] erratic behavior’.
In 2004, Jamie allegedly went to rehab after Britney urged him to get help.
Addressing her dad’s drinking during a court hearing over her conservatorship in 2021, the Piece of Me singer said: ‘I’ve always been scared of my dad. I was scared he would show up drunk.’
Jamie himself revealed in December 2022 that he had moved in with his younger daughter Jamie Lynn during an interview with The Mail on Sunday, although at the time he blamed the decision on health problems.
In 2008, Jamie took complete control over Britney’s life when he became her conservator following a mental breakdown at her home on Mulholland Drive in Beverly Hills, California.
In 2014, Britney told a judge that presided over her conservatorship that she suspected her dad was drinking again. His attorney denied this at the time.
Jamie Lynn, was also greatly impacted by her father’s drinking, claiming his alcoholism made her feel even more ‘neglected’ living in the shadow of her megastar sister.
She wrote: ‘He spent most of my life in that cycle of ruinous behavior. His bouts of drinking always caused me periods of torment and sorrow.
‘It created a lot of anxiety. The hardest part was, “Could I trust you? Are you drinking? Are you not?”‘
Jamie suffered a serious health scare in 2018 when his colon ruptured. The condition can be caused by years of alcohol consumption, according to the World Journal of Emergency Surgery.
‘A couple of months ago my father was hospitalized and almost died,’ Britney tweeted at the time. ‘We’re all so grateful that he came out of it alive, but he still has a long road ahead of him.’
The Toxic singer cancelled her second residency in Las Vegas, Domination, to care for her father.
Her first residency Piece Of Me in Sin City had her performing almost every night for four years, from 2013 until 2017, and was one of the most lucrative residencies in Las Vegas’ history.
‘I am dedicating my focus and energy to care for my family. We have a very special relationship and I want to be with my family at this time just like they have always been there for me,’ she wrote at the time.
‘It’s important to always put your family first… and that’s the decision I had to make.’
But, in a court deposition in 2021, Britney alleged that Jamie forced her to say she was pulling the plug on Domination to care for him as she detailed the horrific abuse that she was forced to endure during her 13-year conservatorship.
Britney told the court that her father had her admitted to a mental health facility against her will as retaliation for voicing opinions during dress rehearsals about cancelling the residency.
Britney stated she ‘didn’t want to ever go there,’ referring to the mental health facility, which saw her undergo extreme treatment methods generally used on those with severe mental health issues.
‘I remember calling my dad on the phone crying, and he said “You have to listen to the doctors. I can’t help you now,’” she told the court.
The pop princess also claimed that her father told her that – if she ever challenged the treatment option he chose – she would lose the battle.
‘Now you don’t have to go, but if you don’t go, we’re going to go to trial and you’re going to lose,’ Britney claimed her father told her at the time.
In court documents filed by Britney’s attorney Matthew Rosengart, who was instrumental in getting the star free from the conservatorship – Jamie was referred to as an ‘alcoholic and gambling addict’.
Britney has not spoken to – or seen – her dad since her conservatorship ended in November 2021.
Although recent reports suggested that Britney wished to make amends with her father, DailyMail.com was told that this is 100 percent inaccurate.
