TV presenter Jonnie Irwin has shared some new photos celebrating the “best Father’s Day ever” with his three young sons.
The former star of property shows such as Channel 4‘s A Place in the Sun and the BBC‘s Escape to the Country revealed that he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer after first sensing something was wrong with his health while filming for work back in 2020.
The 49-year-old shared the devastating details of his illness during an interview with Hello back in November 2022, explaining that he was driving when he noticed his vision had gone blurry, before heading to the doctors and subsequently receiving his cancer diagnosis with an initial prognosis of only six months to live.
Medical treatment had since been prolonging life for the father-of-three, but Jonnie said he had chosen to go public with his diagnosis after the cancer had spread from his lungs to his brain.
Terminally ill Jonnie Irwin shares photos of ‘best Father’s Day ever’ with young sons / Credit: Jonnie Irwin (via Instagram)
Jonnie said in his initial interview with Hello magazine that he doesn’t have a bucket list, but instead wants to prioritise spending quality time with and “doing as much as we can as a family”, adding that: “One day, this is going to catch up with me – but I’m doing everything I can to hold that day off for as long as possible.
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“I owe that to Jess and our boys.”
And spending quality time with his family was exactly what Jonnie got to do this past weekend, as he celebrated the “best Father’s Day ever” with his three young sons – four-year-old Rex, twins Rafa and Cormac aged two.
Taking to Instagram on Sunday to share a collection of photos on what the presenter has admitted in another accompanying exclusive interview with Hello magazine will be his “last Father’s Day”, Jonnie wrote: “Had the best Father’s Day ever.
“Breakfast of Chocolate Guinness cake baked expertly my brilliant wife.
“Then cards from the boys and visit from my brother-in-law for a brief pillion ride back in time to enjoy some of the highs and lows of the Ashes, ending in more cake with more family washed down by a drop of champers.”
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Jonnie was diagnosed with terminal cancer back in 2020 / Credit: Jonnie Irwin (via Instagram)
Also in the new interview, Jonnie revealed that he and his wife have chosen not to tell their boys about his cancer diagnosis.
“I keep being asked, ‘Are you going to tell them?’ But tell them what?,” Jonnie explained.
“It would be horrible news that they’d have to get their heads around. And it would confuse the hell out of Rex – he’s got a shocking enough day coming.
“Let’s bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible.”
The BBC is looking for people to apply for the next series of The Traitors
Daisy Jackson
The BBC is currently casting for the next series of The Traitors, and is looking for some deceptive Mancunians to take part.
It’s safe to say that The Traitors is pretty much a cultural phenomenon at this point.
Pretty much everyone and their dog is tuning in to watch The Celebrity Traitors on Thursday and Friday evenings, but this time it’s not about the celebs.
Producers describe The Traitors as a ‘game of trust and treachery’, and there’s always plenty of twists, turns, shocks, and surprises along the way – but do you reckon you’ve got what it takes to play?
If so, the BBC is currently casting for the next series of the popular show, and is calling on people in Greater Manchester and across the UK to apply.
Applications are currently open to players who are over 18 years of age and have the right to legally reside in the UK.
The first series of the smash-hit BBC reality competition show proved pretty popular when it premiered back in 2022, but the second series took things to a whole new level, and truly seemed to capture the attentions of the nation like no other – with millions of viewers tuning in to watch the three episodes each week.
But in case you haven’t seen it, The Traitors is, put simply, a competition series that’s built on strategy, suspicion, and deception, where a team of players are tasked with competing in a series of missions – with the more missions they complete successfully, the bigger the prize pot gets.
However, hidden among the players are the ‘Traitors’, who meet in secret and decide who to eliminate from their fellow players known as the ‘Faithfuls’.
The aim for the ‘Traitors’ is to stay undetected until the end, while the aim for the ‘Faithfuls’ is to banish all of the Traitors before the game ends.
Up for it? You have until 31 May 2027 to apply for the next series of The Traitors here.
Traitors star and comedian Joe Lycett is putting cash behind the bar at two Manchester pubs
Daisy Jackson
Comedian Joe Lycett is putting money behind the bar at two Manchester pubs this week, as he continues to encourage people to get out and support their local boozers.
The TV favourite – who is also currently one of the stars on The Traitors – announced the news as he bid farewell to his fictional TV pub The Lycett Arms.
On the show, he said: “There are 45,000 pubs in the UK – go and give them some love.”
Joe Lycett then proceeded to list 30 brilliant pubs up and down the country, including two in Manchester, and announced that the drinks are on him this week.
He told audiences: “[This] Friday I’ll be putting a little bit of money behind the bar in all the pubs you’ve just seen. I hope you can have a drink on me.”
The pubs he picked out in Manchester are the iconic old boozer The Peveril of the Peak, and the excellent pub and comedy venue The Old Monkey.
The Peveril of the Peak on Great Bridgewater Street is a real icon in the city centre, with its green tiled exterior and its cosy interiors.
Until recently, it was run by legendary local landlady Nancy Swanick, who died in July at the age of 96.
The Peveril of the Peak pub in ManchesterInside The Pev
Commenting on Joe Lycett’s post about his pub offer, they wrote: “You are all more than welcome at The Pev. Give me a shout and I will sort you out with a pie, Joe.”
The Old Monkey, meanwhile, is famed for its comedy nights run by Trapdoor Comedy Club, and for its open mic sessions, as well as award-winning beers.
The Portland Street pub has also very kindly agreed to match Joe Lycett’s donation, which means double the budget for pints for Mancs.
Emily Sergeant -
20th June 2023 
