TV presenter Simon Thomas has opened about losing his wife in 2017, revealing he nearly took his own life.
Gemma tragically died just three days after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, a form of blood cancer at just 40 years old.
Simon, who is a Sky Sports presenter and former Blue Peter host, spoke out about his grief at an event for Marie Curie’s annual Great Daffodil Appeal this week, admitting that he even considered suicide.
‘I didn’t cope very well,’ he revealed. ‘I’ve been to a grief counsellor since three weeks after Gemma died. It really helps me. Grief is painful whoever you’ve lost and whatever time in your life you lose them. There is no moving on. That person going leaves a gigantic hole in your life that no-one or nothing can ever fill.’
He went on to share how his determination to carry on for his son saved him, and strengthened their bond. ‘For the sake of Ethan I had to find life again,’ he said. ‘My relationship with Ethan is so much more profound than it ever was.’
During an appearance on This Morning earlier this week, the dad spoke movingly to Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield about how difficult Mother’s Day can be when a family has lost a mum.
Simon, who said that he is now focusing on ‘rebuilding life around that gap’, has also revealed that he is in a new relationship with a woman he met through his church. ‘She’s Christian as well and that’s important to me as a man of faith,’ he told BBC Radio 5 Live. ‘She’s been an incredible support for me. She was the only person who would always pick up the phone.’
Heartbreakingly, he went on to admit that she reminded him of his wife, saying, ‘What I saw in her, I saw in Gemma. When she said my phone is always on, she meant it.’
