Fans are obsessed with Gary Barlow's super-tall son. Here's the science behind their height difference

Gary Barlow and his son Daniel Barlow are having an unexpected week, as social media users have been captivated by the impressive height difference between father and son.

It comes after Barlow shared a rare photograph of his family, including wife Dawn Andrews and one of their daughters Emily Barlow, on Instagram. In the image, Daniel is seen towering above the rest of his family.

The height disparity between Daniel and his family has sparked memes across the social media platform X. Many people can’t believe just how tall the 24-year-old is compared to his father, and for some, the photo is a welcome distraction from the anxiety of the US election that has just passed.

The Take That star usually keeps his family life private. According to the Daily Mail, he initially shared the image to celebrate Daniel's achievement in completing the Ironman triathlon competition.

He wrote in the caption: "We just couldn't be prouder of our boy - unbelievable amounts of training and determination - when you put in the work you get the results. Congratulations #ironman."

Barlow appears to have taken the image down from his Instagram page after it was flooded with comments. However, the photograph has been shared widely on social media, where it continues to impress fans.

How tall is Gary Barlow's son?

While Daniel appears to cast a long shadow over his father with his height, the reality is that he is not inordinately tall, measuring in at 6ft 2inches, according to Heart.

It may be Gary’s height that makes the difference appear so stark. The singer measures in at 5ft 8inches, just below the UK average height for men which is 5ft 9inches.

Gary isn’t alone in his experience of having a son tower above him - returning US president Donald Trump is also dwarfed by his son, 18 year old Barron Trump. Bear Grylls’ teenage son Marmaduke also casts an impressive figure next to his dad.

But, do all sons grow up to be taller than their fathers? We delve into the science of height.

What determines how tall you are?

Your height is mostly determined by your genes, as well as some environmental factors. According to BBC Science Focus, human height is around 70% genetic and 30% environmental.

A previous study by researchers from the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital said fathers appear to determine the height of their child, while mothers appear to determine how much body fat they will have. They said that a "father’s height has a direct impact on their baby’s growth, with taller dads having longer and heavier babies".

That doesn’t explain why Daniel is so much taller than his father Gary. So, what gives?

While the broad understanding of genetics applies to a large part of the population, these estimates aren’t always accurate. Scientists found that a huge number of genes are involved in determining our height.

The 2022 study, which was the largest-ever genome-wide association study, found 12,111 variants that cluster around parts of the genome associated with skeletal growth.

It means that scientists aren’t entirely sure why some people turn out to be much taller or much shorter than their parents, due to the vast number of factors that can influence height.

Environmental factors like nutrition, exposure to harmful pollutants, and even childhood diseases, especially infections, can also affect growth.

Consequently, we may not ever know why Daniel and other children shoot past their parents in height, as it comes down to many different factors and causes. But, we can certainly admire them from down here.

Read more about children and parenting:

• Which vitamins and minerals do children need? (Yahoo Life UK, 6-min read)

• Toddlers ‘get half their calories from ultra-processed foods’ – study (PA Media, 4-min read)

• Children who eat more fruit and veg have better mental health – study (PA Media, 3-min read)