Jonnie Irwin with his son Rex over Christmas
(Picture: Jonnie Irwin/Instagram)Jonnie Irwin has shared photos of his Christmas break on social media as he gave an update on his cancer battle.
The A Place in the Sun presenter, 49, has months left to live after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2020, which has since spread to his brain.
Irwin spoke of celebrating what might be his “last” Christmas with his wife Jessica and their three sons Rex, four, and twins, Rafa and Cormac, two, ahead of the holidays, and posted snaps from their time together during the break on Instagram.
The TV star shared a series of photos of his brood at home with extended family and friends, as he captioned: “After NY with family tacked on a couple of days and ventured deeper south. Splendid! #friends”.
In one photo, Irwin could be seen smiling while sat on a couch with son Rex, and in another, he was seen with loved ones, hours before ringing in the New Year.
Another snap saw the presenter’s wife Jessica, 40, with their three boys enjoying a day trip to a farm.
Irwin’s latest family photos come after he spoke about not wanting his children to know that this could be their final Christmas with their dad.
The Channel 4 host chose to focus on enjoying the holidays as best he could, maintaining “blissful ignorance” over his terminal illness, for as long as possible, for his sons.
Irwin told the Daily Mail: “When I’m more frail or in bed for days we might [tell them]. If you have 20 days left, why spend them in mourning and confusion?
“Why not just have 15 days of pure, blissful ignorance and five days of knowing the facts?”
He added that he wasn’t “looking forward” to eventually telling his eldest Rex about his tragic diagnosis, and still wondered whether it was the right thing to do.
Irwin described the Christmas period as “tricky” elsewhere, due to the uncertainty of how long he will be around for his family.
The concerned star told The Sun: “I’d be lying if I didn’t say that Christmas will be tricky. I’m not saying this will be my last one because I don’t know for certain.
"I want to be here as long as I can but it could be and I want to enjoy it and just spend time with Jess and the kids."
