Time heals all wounds: Hugh Jackman enjoys a rare public outing with his mother Grace McNeil in the Hamptons - after she 'abandoned' him aged eight By Jo Scrimshire For Daily Mail Australia Published: 20:52 GMT, 12 February 2019 | Updated: 20:56 GMT, 12 February 2019 Viewcomments Hugh Jackman was just eight years old when his mother, Grace McNeil, abandoned her family in Australia and returned to the UK. The Hollywood star, 50, has previously described Grace's sudden departure as 'traumatic', but it appears time heals all wounds. Hugh was pictured grocery shopping with his mother in The Hamptons, New York on Tuesday in a rare public sighting together. Time heals all wounds: Hugh Jackman enjoyed a rare public outing with his mother Grace McNeil in the Hamptons, New York on Tuesday - after she 'abandoned' him aged eight The Wolverine star, who won his first Grammy over the weekend, wrapped up warm in a black zip-up hoodie featuring the words, 'All be happy'. He completed his look with a beanie hat, dark sunglasses and grey tracksuit pants. The sighting comes after Hugh told Australia's WHO magazine in January 2018 that his mother abandoning him as a child was 'traumatic'. No dramas! The Wolverine star, who won his first Grammy over the weekend, wrapped up warm in a black zip-up hoodie featuring the words, 'All be happy' The actor was an eight-year-old schoolboy when Grace left him without even saying goodbye. She left Australia and returned to her native England in the late '70s, leaving her husband Christopher Jackman to raise five children alone. After the couple divorced, Hugh's sisters Zoe and Sonia went to live with Grace in the UK. Hugh and his brothers, Ian and Ralph, stayed in Sydney with their father. 'It was traumatic,' Hugh said, recalling his difficult childhood. 'I thought she was probably going to come back. And then it sort of dragged on and on.' The Greatest Showman star added that after his mother left the family, he saw her about 'once a year'. In December 2012, Hugh told Australia's 60 Minutes program that he still vividly remembers 'the morning she left'. 'I remember her being in a towel around her head and saying goodbye, must have been the way she said goodbye,' he said. 'As I went off to school, when I came back, there was no one there in the house.' He added: 'The next day there was a telegram from England. Mum was there. And then that was it. Dad used to pray every night that mum would come back.' Fortunately, Hugh and his mother reconciled years later. He told The Sun newspaper in October 2011: I am 43 now and we have definitely made our peace, which is important. 'I was always quite connected with my mum. I have a good relationship with her.' Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility