Geordie TV star Denise Welch has opened up about how life has changed since the death of beloved father, Vin almost a year ago.
The Loose Women star was ‘blindsided’ when her father died in September last year. But she has revealed the heartbreak led to her re-evaluating the things that were important to her. She was extremely close to her dad - who even appeared on the ITV panel show with her on occasion.
She told the Daily Star: “When I lost my dad, it changed my perspective on things. I decided I didn’t have a very good work/life balance. My dad was somebody who filled every single minute of his 84 years. I want to carry on that family tradition.”
Read more: Denise Welch left fuming with Jet2 and demands answers over delayed flight
Denise added she was reminded of Vin on a daily basis - continuing: "It has been months since he died, but grief can blindside you. I spoke to my son about him the other day and we were both crying.”
Now, the actress who's starred in shows like Coronation Street and like many in the North East cut her teeth in Byker Grove, says she is embracing life more than ever - and wants to add as much fun to her life as she can. She's also spoken movingly about the importance of talking about grief though. This is in addition to having become a vocal campaigner around mental health and addiction issues - and over the past year she's spoken movingly about the mental health impact on many of the Covid-19 pandemic.
She said it was vital that we talk about the huge impact bereavement and personal loss can have – and also recommends remembering good times that included lost ones. Sharing further advice, she added: “And while you’ve got your mum and dad, include them in everything. Ring them more than once every two weeks. And never be afraid to say that you love them."
Denise's dad Vin died last year after minor surgery and battling pneumonia at the University Hospital of North Durham. Denise was left devastated, but has always paid tribute to the NHS staff who looked after him. Earlier this year she told ChronicleLive that nurses there "gave dad the most peaceful passing he could have wished for".
Back at the time of Vin's death, Denise broke the news in an emotional Instagram post saying: "The words I’ve dreaded saying all of my life. Last night at 11pm, we lost our dad, the life force that was Vin Welch. After making a miraculous recovery recently from major surgeries, pneumonia plus his existing pulmonary fibrosis was more than even he could take.
"He left us surrounded by his family who could not have loved anyone more. I can’t quite function as I’m so grief stricken, but I know he meant so much to so many people, even those who’d never met him."
Since then, she has not shied away from discussing how difficult losing her parents has been. When she first returned to TV screens two months after Vin's death, she tearfully spoke about him. She told viewers: “Both my mum and my dad when they went, they went with their family.”
She went on to share details about her father’s funeral which she described as a “celebration of his life” with a pink sparkly coffin, a Frank Sinatra performer, and mourners wearing bright suits and sparkles. She said: “He would have been so peed off at not being there.”
READ NEXT:
- Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Hemsworth, Brie Larson and Mark Ruffalo send well wishes to Whitley Bay Marvel superfan recovering from open-heart surgery
- Parents of premature twins thank Newcastle hospital unit for saving precious son's life
- Loose Women's Denise Welch exposes her and ex Tim Healy's 'secret' Neighbours past
- Denise Welch has shock Waterloo Road reunion in American supermarket
- Denise Welch's 'heart aches' for Loose Women co-star after SBTV founder Jamal Edwards dies
