Jonnie Irwin: Escape to the Country and A Place within the Sun host dies aged 50

TV presenter Jonnie Irwin, who fronted property reveals Escape to the Country and A Place within the Sun, has died.

An announcement on his Instagram asserting his dying mentioned he touched “the lives of so many along with his kindness, heat and infectious spirit”.

Irwin was initially given six months to stay, however defied the percentages and made his sickness public after two years.

At the time he mentioned he hoped his prognosis would encourage folks to “take advantage of day by day”.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share the information of Jonnie’s passing,” mentioned an announcement on the account the place he used to submit updates on his well being.

“A very outstanding soul, he fought bravely towards most cancers with unwavering power and braveness.”

Freeform Productions, the manufacturing firm behind A Place within the Sun, mentioned, in an announcement on X: “Jonnie was a much-loved a part of the A Place within the Sun household and for greater than 18 years he introduced pleasure, wit and bundles of vitality to the present.

“We will miss him terribly.”

Jasmine Harman, his long-time co-presenter on the Channel 4 present, wrote a fulsome tribute on Instagram to the person she shared the display with for almost 20 years, recalling his “unbelievable capability to attach with folks”.

“I’ve by no means admired you greater than over the previous couple of years as you have confronted life with most cancers with positivity, willpower and bloody mindedness,” she wrote.

“The world is a bit darker right this moment with out you, however I’ll all the time smile once I consider you.”

Irwin first offered A Place within the Sun in 2004, and started internet hosting BBC One’s Escape to the Country in 2010.

The first signal of his sickness got here when his imaginative and prescient turned blurry when driving in Italy whereas filming in August 2020.

“Within per week of flying again from filming, I used to be being given six months to stay,” he instructed Hello! journal.

“I needed to go home and inform my spouse, who was taking care of our infants, that she was on her personal just about. That was devastating.”

Irwin married spouse Jessica in 2016, and so they have three young sons Rex, Rafa and Cormac.

He instructed ITV’s Good Morning Britain he would movie his remaining time along with his household so his kids would keep in mind him. “I would like it a minimum of on digicam, on movie, to have the ability to present them that the early days had been sensible,” he mentioned.

Following his prognosis, the presenter mentioned he determined to maintain his sickness personal as a result of he didn’t need folks to deal with him otherwise and did not need to lose work.

He instructed The Sun newspaper: “I’ve been a presenter, then I wasn’t a presenter for A Place within the Sun after 18 years. And then I flip the TV on, and there is another person doing my job.

“To have that taken away, to have that wage taken away, to have that goal taken away… If having most cancers wasn’t unhealthy sufficient… I used to be actually low. That actually affected me. I can not even watch the present now.”

Freeform Productions and Channel 4 responded on the time: “Whilst we had been unable to proceed to movie overseas with him, we’re delighted that he was in a position to stay as a part of our group within the UK for exhibitions. We in fact perceive how irritating this have to be for him at this extremely troublesome time.”

Irwin returned to screens whereas having therapy on BBC One’s Escape to the Country and Morning Live.

He additionally determined to throw a fiftieth celebration months early, which was attended by 170 family and friends.

“It was an amazing night time. I selected a playlist with some nice tunes from the ’90s and 2000s and folks got here from everywhere in the nation and overseas,” he mentioned.

“I did not know the extent of the loyalty and generosity that my associates would exhibit.”

There are normally no indicators or signs within the early levels of lung most cancers however they do develop because the situation worsens.

Many folks with the situation finally develop signs together with:

Lung most cancers is the commonest explanation for most cancers dying all over the world, with 2.1 million folks identified in 2020 and 1.8 million deaths.

It can also be the largest explanation for most cancers deaths within the UK, killing greater than 35,000 folks a 12 months – a few fifth of all UK most cancers deaths.

The NHS says greater than 43,000 persons are identified with the situation yearly.