Oxfordshire mum gives birth to third biggest baby in the UK

Cherral Mitchell, 31, couldn’t believe her eyes when 14lb 15oz Alpha was weighed by doctors after his C-section birth at the John Radcliffe Hospital on Thursday morning.

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It took two staff members to pull him out, with another pushing on Mrs Mitchell’s stomach. When he was weighed, he tipped the scales at more than a stone. 

Mrs Mitchell described Alpha as a ‘bit of a pumpkin baby’ with his birth just days before Halloween.

The mother-of-four told the Oxford Mail: “I knew he was going to be big and we were taking bets on how big he was going to be – it was quite a shock how big he actually is though.

“My husband was with me and was very shocked, I wish I could’ve taken a picture of his face when the staff said how big he was.

Baby Alpha was born on Thursday morning

She continued: “He’s a bit of a pumpkin baby with it being so close to Halloween.

“A lot of people are double-checking his weight as they don’t believe it, he’s made a bit of a name for himself at the hospital.

“I’m definitely glad he was a C-section, I don’t think I’d have handled a vaginal birth.”

Mrs Mitchell and husband Tyson, both from Thame, only found out late in the pregnancy that Alpha wasn’t going to be a normal birth after she ‘popped’ while on holiday.

“It was quite late in the pregnancy when we knew he was going to be bigger than usual,” she said.

“My stomach just seemed to pop out one night when we are on holiday in Great Yarmouth.”

Mrs Mitchell was diagnosed with gestational diabetes late during the pregnancy – after 35 weeks – with doctors saying this could be the reason why Alpha is so large.

“The doctors think the diabetes is why he’s so big, especially as he had a few months before being diagnosed,” said Mrs Mitchell.

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She said: “He’s currently in the ICU because he needs help with his oxygen levels and his blood sugar is low.

“It’s normal for gestational diabetes babies to be in hospital after the birth, and for there to be some sort of complications.

“He’ll probably be in for another few days, to get his blood sugars up.

“I’ll still be in hospital over the weekend for sure, but we’ll know more day by day. Hopefully we’ll be out at the same time.

“Everyone is eager to meet him and his uncle keeps saying that he’s like Andre the giant.”

Stay-at-home mum Mrs Mitchell and electrical engineer Mr Mitchell, 35, are hoping Alpha can meet his siblings Rogue-Angel, four, three-year-old Lyon, and Twyla-Bay, 10 months, next week.

In another remarkable twist, Alpha is not just a large newborn, but also an unplanned one.

“He was a surprise baby anyway because I had a coil fitted after our third child was born,” said Mrs Mitchell.

While Alpha’s weight is astonishing, the heaviest baby born in the UK is 15lb 8oz Guy Carr, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, born in 1992.

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