Hayley Mills skyrocketed to fame as a child star under Walt Disney’s wing for seven years — only to see her once-promising fortune slip away.

The actress, whose most memorable roles included “Pollyanna” and “The Parent Trap,” recently appeared alongside her sister, Juliet Mills, on “The Rosebud Podcast.” The appearance celebrated Mills’ 80th birthday.

When host Gyles Brandreth pressed Mills on what became of “the millions” she earned during her Disney years, she replied, “I gave it to the tax man.”

FORMER DISNEY CHILD STAR WOKE UP TO ‘ZERO DOLLARS’ IN BANK ACCOUNT AFTER NEARLY 20 YEARS IN SHOWBIZ

“It was rather a big chunk,” she admitted. “It was most of it because it was all put into a trust fund, because super tax was 90% in those days, so they had to do something.”

“I do know the background of this, and it’s partly because you were poorly advised,” said Brandreth. “But also, it was partly to do with the naïveté of your father, I think. There was an innocence about him and a sort of optimism.”

“He had a business manager who made those sorts of decisions,” Juliet, 84, chimed in.

WATCH: HAYLEY MILLS RECALLS PERSONAL BOND WITH WALT DISNEY ON SET

The Mills sisters come from a celebrated British acting family. Their father, Sir John Mills, was one of Britain’s most respected actors and had a career that spanned decades. Their mother, Mary Hayley Bell, was also an actress and a playwright.

“Stanley [Passmore] also advised Daddy, and not very well,” said Mills, referring to the family’s solicitor. “The trust company was set up for me. Stanley was also involved in setting up a trust company for [actor] Jack Hawkins. And the Inland Revenue attacked his trust company, which affected British law. It created the precedent.”

“And so, when I reached 21, instead of being given the key to the door, I was handed an envelope across a green baize tablecloth by Stanley, which was the Inland Revenue basically saying, ‘Thank you. You owe us 90% of your earnings,’” Mills continued. “And I’ve never been good at figures.”

“I said, ‘Well, what does this mean? I don’t understand.’ And Stanley laughed and said, ‘Well, I think it means you have to move to America [for work].’ And that’s all he ever said. He was a crook. He didn’t give a flying Dutchman.”

The Times of London reported that when Mills turned 21, she went to collect her money from the trust that her father and Passmore set up for her. However, she discovered that the trust hadn’t been set up correctly, and she had to pay a surtax of 91% on everything in it. While she contested it fiercely, there was no solution beyond suing her father or Passmore, the outlet reported.

On the podcast, Mills said she had a meeting with a prominent lawyer in hopes of fighting the case, but “it didn’t work.”

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Lord Denning, one of Britain’s most powerful judges at the time, briefly gave Mills a win in her fight with the tax authorities. In the 1970s, he ruled in her favor, agreeing that it was unfair to tax her Disney earnings the way the government had. However, the victory didn’t stick. The case went to the House of Lords, which overturned Denning’s decision, leaving Mills on the hook for the massive bill that wiped out much of her fortune.

Mills pleaded her case to the British government for years, the Los Angeles Times reported. However, her appeal was denied for good in 1975. If she had won, Mills said she would have been able to keep about 2 million pounds, which is well over $17 million today.

Mills kept working.

“I didn’t have a sensible enough sense of my career and what I ought to be doing, but I didn’t want to do more Disney movies,” said Mills. “I wanted to spread my wings and have a greater choice and not be limited by that.

“[But] I didn’t know what to look for. I didn’t know who I was. There was this moment when we’re growing up where we’re really on that uncomfortable seesaw, being still one foot in childhood and the other foot in being a woman. And I found it awfully difficult to get both feet into womanhood because [there] was a part of me that didn’t want to disappoint people. ‘Oh, she’s not that cute little girl anymore. She’s what?’ I didn’t know what sort of thing to look for.”

After she became a mother, Mills did some stage work and took on a handful of TV gigs in the U.S., the Los Angeles Times reported. She still acts occasionally.

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Back in 2021, Mills told Fox News Digital she was “fortunate” to have had a better outcome than many other child stars in Hollywood.

“I was working for a studio with a boss who was a genuinely good man,” she explained at the time. “He cared about the people who worked for him. I also had the support of my parents, who were both in the business. So I had support. The business can really come at people like an express train. You’re suddenly surrounded by wealth and showered with attention at an immense pace. It’s very intense and very, very easy to lose your way unless you have that support.”

“I certainly had my struggles,” Mills admitted. “But I think we all face struggles growing up. You’re trying to make sense of life and who you are, except you’re trying to figure all of this out in Hollywood. When you’re in that environment, it’s hard to hang on to reality. But after I worked, I went home. I went to boarding school in England. So, in some ways, I think I had it better than others.”

In a recently reshared 2017 interview with “Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia,” Mills spoke of her close relationship with Disney, who died in 1966 at age 65.

“He was a great friend of my family as a result of my working there,” she told the outlet. “He got on terribly well with my mother and father, particularly my mom, who was very funny and had a wicked sense of humor, which Walt really appreciated. So, I always felt very happy in his company. He was a very warm, kind and sweet man. I loved him. I was really fond of him.”

“I always knew he was a brilliant, wonderful, amazing man,” Mills shared. “And he took us around his fantastic Disneyland. He took us all around. And how amazing is that, to be taken around Disneyland by Walt Disney? But I didn’t appreciate at the time how lucky I was to have actually begun my career in that studio with him at the head of it, because he ran it so well, and it was small, and everyone knew everyone else, and everyone knew everyone’s name. And so did he.”

This Sunday marks one year since we lost Logan Federico.

For one of us, she was his daughter, a little girl grown into a beautiful young woman, and for him, along with his wife Melissa and his son Jacob, this is a fight they are facing together as a family. For the other, she represents a promise we must keep to every family in South Carolina.

Logan is more than a headline. She was a daughter, a friend, a young woman with her entire life ahead of her. She had a future full of promise and people who loved her deeply. That is what was taken.

She came to South Carolina to spend time with people she loved.

CHARLOTTE LIGHT-RAIL STABBING MURDER SPURS LANDMARK CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM FROM NORTH CAROLINA REPUBLICANS

Instead, she was killed, brutally and unnecessarily, in an act of violence allegedly carried out by a man who had been in and out of prison for years with a lengthy rap sheet.

Let’s call this tragedy what it was. Let’s not shrink from the horror.

According to police reports he broke into a home and stole an innocent life. He is responsible for his evil, deranged behavior. But the system failed to stop him, and that failure cost a family everything.

One year later, that loss does not fade. It does not get easier. But it does demand something of all of us. It demands action.

That is why we are fighting to fix the system: to close the loopholes, reform the judicial process, and slam the revolving door on career criminals.

It’s about fixing the failures that allow individuals with a long criminal record and multiple prior encounters with the justice system to continue endangering innocent people. Due to antiquated, outdated methods of keeping court and criminal records, and critical breakdowns in how information was tracked and shared, decision-makers did not have the full picture.

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That can never happen again. It should have never happened in the first place.

We must ensure law enforcement agencies from different jurisdictions, judges, and prosecutors have complete, accurate criminal histories before making decisions that affect someone’s freedom. It is necessary and common sense. And it is long overdue.

If we are serious about protecting our communities, we must take a harder look at sentencing and rehabilitation. Too often, repeat offenders are treated like first-time offenders. Charges are reduced. Sentences are light.

And then they are released and, in some cases, go on to hurt people again.

That is not compassion. That is failure.

Our system must recognize patterns of violent behavior and respond with consequences that protect innocent people.

We also need real judicial reform.

Judges make decisions every day that determine whether someone walks free or is held accountable. Those decisions must be rooted in transparency, accountability, and an unwavering commitment to public safety.

We cannot ignore the growing push toward eliminating cash bail.

I LED PEACEFUL PRO-LIFERS THE BIDEN ‘JUSTICE’ DEPT HUNTED. WE NOW KNOW HOW FAR THEY WENT

Bail is not about convenience. It is about safety. It exists to ensure that individuals who pose a danger are not released back into our communities before trial.

Anyone who poses a threat to innocent lives should not be released. Period.

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Logan Federico should still be alive. This weekend should not be an anniversary. We should not be mourning an innocent life lost. We should still be enjoying time with her.

Her family should not be living with this pain. No family should, and no other innocent life should ever be taken because the system failed to act.

This Sunday, we remember Logan. We honor her life and everything she meant to those who loved her.

But remembrance is not enough. If we truly want to honor her, we must act.

Stephen Federico is the proud father of Logan Federico.

From classic diners to award-winning ice cream shops, a handful of spots serving up milkshakes across the United States are drawing national attention for their standout flavors and devoted followings.

A recent Tasting Table roundup highlighted top milkshake destinations in every U.S. state, based on strong customer reviews and local acclaim.

The ranking looked at different varieties — malt, hand-spun, custard and hand-dipped shakes — and did not consider major chains with locations across the country.

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Local and regional chains were “fair game,” however, according to the outlet.

Here are five of the top shops that have broken through with national awards, media recognition and widespread buzz.

This longtime Anchorage diner, which first opened in 1955, earned a James Beard America’s Classics Award, one of the most prestigious honors for regional restaurants, in 2025.

The family-owned diner has built a loyal, multigenerational following over seven decades, with returning customers often calling it their first stop when they come back to Alaska, according to Anchorage Daily News.

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Customers regularly praise its thick, old-school milkshakes and malts, with flavors ranging from butterscotch and banana to coffee, root beer and peanut butter, according to Tasting Table.

Just a year after opening in 2008, Morelli’s was named one of the best ice cream shops in the country by Bon Appétit.

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The Atlanta shop has built a loyal following over the years and is known for its unique flavor lineup, which includes coconut jalapeño, blueberry corncake, the real Krispy Kreme doughnut-filled “Krispy Kreamier” and maple bacon brittle.

“We cut, fry and then caramelize pieces of bacon, then incorporate the bacon brittle pieces into a maple ice cream base,” the shop says on its website, where it posts the flavors of the day. 

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“When you see it on the menu, get it!”

A Texas favorite for more than 40 years, Amy’s Ice Creams has racked up dozens of local awards, particularly from the Austin Chronicle.

Founded in 1984, the Austin-based chain is known for its playful, customer-focused atmosphere. Not only do employees perform ice cream tricks, but hundreds of rotating flavors like Belgian chocolate and butterscotch banana keep fans coming back for rich, customizable shakes.

Founder Amy Simmons told MySanAntonio.com last year the brand was built around a simple mission: “to make people’s day.”

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“Ice cream is this incredible vehicle for happiness,” she said.

Known for its over-the-top burgers made with a 50/50 blend of ground bacon and beef, as well as its indulgent desserts, Slater’s 50/50 has also gained national attention, with its Las Vegas location landing on Yelp’s Top 100 restaurants list in 2025.

The restaurant was also featured on Netflix’s “Fresh, Fried & Crispy” for its extravagant menu creations.

The milkshakes are known to be indulgent and unique, often piled high with toppings like marshmallow fluff, cookies and candy. Its best seller, according to its website, is the Strawberry Deluxe Cheesecake Milkshake, which is topped with fresh strawberries and a whole slice of cheesecake.

This Baltimore ice cream shop has earned a spot among Yelp’s top-rated ice cream destinations in the U.S., drawing praise for its locally sourced ingredients and creamy texture.

Flavors like mint chocolate chip and peach pie are popular.

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Many customers point to the shop’s rich, well-balanced shakes, with one reviewer calling it “top-notch” for its quality ice cream and fun, rotating flavors.