A Place in the Sun's Jonnie Irwin fears his children won't remember him when he dies
A Place in the Sun’s Jonnie Irwin has said there’s ‘no chance’ his children will remember after revealing his terminal cancer.
Irwin is dad to three-year-old Rex and two-year-old twins Cormac and Rafa, whom he shares with wife Jess.
Earlier this month, the 49-year-old shared the devastating news that he has terminal cancer, after being diagnosed in 2020 and has been told he has just ‘six months’ to live.
The former A Place in the Sun host said he planned to make as many memories with his wife and kids before he passed.
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But, in a heart-wrenching interview with the Sun, Jonnie admitted that every happy moment he shares with his children is tinged with sadness.
He said: “Every time something really nice happens with them, I have this thing knocking at my door, saying, ‘Don’t get too happy because you’re not going to be around much longer.'
“Then, I think they’re not going to remember me, they’re really not.
“They’re too young and if I die this year there’s no chance they will have memories.
“And someone else is probably going to bring them up. I’ve done the hard yards with them and someone else will get the easy bit.”
The TV star said he was diagnosed in August 2020 after experiencing some concerning symptoms while filming for A Place In The Sun in Italy.
The TV star recalled that his first warning sign came when his vision went blurry while driving around Italy.
"Within a week of flying back from filming, I was being given six months to live," he shared.
"I had to go home and tell my wife, who was looking after our babies, that she was on her own pretty much. That was devastating. All I could do was apologise to her. I felt so responsible."
Thanks to various cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, Jonnie has been able to prolong the time he had with his kids and has said he tries to stay positive.
He said: "I don’t know how long I have left, but I try to stay positive and my attitude is that I'm living with cancer, not dying from it.
"I set little markers - things I want to be around for. I got into the habit of saying: 'Don't plan ahead because I might not be well enough.' But now I want to make plans.
"I want to make memories and capture these moments with my family because the reality is, my boys are going to grow up not knowing their dad and that breaks my heart."
Claire Reid