Now 15, the boys say they have never felt different

He was branded selfish for raising them without a mother

Triplets raised by Britain's first surrogate father say they have had a happy upbringing despite not having a mother in their lives.

Lars, Piers and Ian Mucklejohn, now 15, were brought up in Newbury, Berkshire, by their single father Ian, 69, after he had them using donor eggs and a surrogate mother.

The businessman and heterosexual bachelor made history in 2001 when he became the first single man in the UK to have children this way.

From left, single father Ian with his sons Lars, Piers and Ian on today's This Morning. He had them using donor eggs and a surrogate mother

The triplets told Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford they have never felt different because of their unconventional conception

Aged 54 at the time, he was accused of being selfish for having children when they wouldn't have a mother figure.

He has never married, and female friends aside - among them Esther Rantzen, who is Lars's godmother - there has never been a significant female figure in their lives.

But 15 years later, his son's revealed on today's This Morning that they have never felt like they have missed out, or been damaged by never knowing a mother's love.

Lars told presenters Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford: 'It is more common nowadays than it was in the past, you see single parent families all the time. I have never felt abnormal.'

Ian agrees saying he has never felt his sons have had an inadequate childhood due to their unconventional conception.

Ian spent £50,000 to have his three babies and faced criticism at the time from people who said he was selfish for raising them without a mother (Ian with l-r Lars, Piers and Ian)

Ian believes there wouldn't be as much media attention about the way he had his sons today as the world has changed and single parenting an using donors is more common

He said of the outcry starting his family created at time: 'I look back and think what was all the fuss about?'

As it is now more common for single parents to have children via sperm and egg donors, and for gay couples to raise children without mothers, Ian said: 'The world is different now and if I have played tiny part in creating the difference, I am thrilled.

'I don't think there would be as much media attention is I did this today.'

The triplets admitted they never thought they were unusual and they only found out about how they came into the world by reading about it online when they were older, as their father never discussed it with them.

Piers said: 'We found out through the media and then he fully explained.

'It was brave for him to go through such a thing. It shows how much he cared to have children and how much he loved us.'

The triplets have met their biological mother, Melissa Valdovines, pictured, who Ian picked to be the egg donor after being impressed by her profile. Another woman then carried the babies as a surrogate

The triplets at their Christening with their godmothers, who include Esther Rantzen, left

He added of the criticism his father has faced for his actions: 'You can't say he's selfish, if anything it was selfless to go through all that to have children.'

Lars agreed saying: 'It shows his determination, if he wants something, he can get it.'

Ian said of the outcry starting his family created at time: 'I look back and think what was all the fuss about?'

Ian spent £50,000 in order to have the three boys after contacting a surrogacy agency in his fifties, after realising it could be his only chance to have a family as he was still single and unlucky in love.

He admits he had tried online dating and considered carrying on trying to find a woman who he could have a family with but felt 'time was not on my side'.

So instead of spending the next two years trying to meet someone and start a family with them, he investigated surrogacy options and pursued this route.

The first agency he went to refused to help him because he wasn't gay, but the next in Beverly Hills helped him achieve his goal.

He choose Melissa Valdovines, a 27-year-old civil engineering student, to be his egg donor from a selection he viewed because her profile was 'not only beautiful, but witty, kind and intelligent — all the qualities you would hope for in your children.'

The boys went on to meet her in person in 2006 when Ian took them to America, and in 2011 she came to the UK to visit.

Another then 27-year-old, Tina Price, who passed away from a stroke earlier this year, agreed to act as a surrogate for him.

The triplets as toddlers. They said there is some sibling rivalry between them

Ian on This Morning with his family, he said he doesn't know what all the fuss was about around the way they were conceived in 2001

He was stunned when she told him she was 'very' pregnant as all three embryos she had inserted implanted.

Ian said today he knew raising triplets would be challenging but the alternative - having one of them aborted - 'was unacceptable'.

When they were born he had a maternity nurse for six months and then a nanny for their early years as he was advised by a solicitor that social services would look more favorably on him if there was a 'female presence' in the house.

But by the time the boys had turned two, Ian had dispensed with the nanny and started juggling running his business from home with childcare so he could look after his sons himself.

Two of the boys are now at the exclusive £18,000-a-year Abingdon School, while one - Ian will not say which - goes to the local comprehensive, as he is a little less academic.

The triplets revealed on today's This Morning that they don't always get on and there is some sibling rivalry between them.

Something their father said he struggled to get his head around as an only child.