A Place In The Sun’s Jonnie Irwin admitted to hospital amid terminal diagnosis

The ‘Escape to the Country’ presenter was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2020

Ellie Muir
Sunday 04 June 2023 07:10 BST
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Jonnie Irwin details plans to provide for his children after terminal cancer diagnosis

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Jonnie Irwin has revealed that he has been admitted to hospital as he deals with terminal cancer.

The Escape to the Country presenter, 49, said in November that he “doesn’t know how long” he has left to live, after first being diagnosed with lung cancer in August 2020, which later spread to his brain.

He went public with his diagnosis in November 2022, after keeping it a secret from his fans for more than two years. Since his announcement, Irwin has been keeping his social media followers up to date with his condition.

In the latest update, the father-of-three revealed he has gone into hospital to be “monitored” but hopes to be released in time for a scheduled appearance at A Place In The Sun Live in London this weekend (2-4 June).

He wrote in an Instagram post: “In hospital this week monitoring a changeover in my pain management regime.”

“Fingers crossed I’ll be out in time to make an appearance on Sunday for this weekends @aplaceinthesunofficial LIVE event at @olympialondon in Kensington,” he continued.

If he is released from the hospital and attends the event, Irwin will be joined on stage by fellow presenters Jasmine Harman, Ben Hillman and Laura Hamilton.

He concluded the post: “Hope to see you there…x.”

In a new podcast OneChat released last week, Irwin said that he was living under a “dark cloud” for the two years he hid his cancer from the world, adding that he kept his condition a secret so that he could continue working and “provide” for his family.

Irwin and his wife Jessica have three children; three-year-old son Rex and two-year-old twins Rafa and Cormac.

Elsewhere in the interview revealed that he had been close to death’s door “at least twice”, emphasising that he prefers to think of his situation as “living with cancer, rather than dying from cancer”.

Irwin explained how he began to feel “alive” again after going public with his illness, but noted that didn’t mean his journey had been easy.

“I have been close to death’s door, twice at least,” he said.

He added: “You lose your memory, you lose your patience. I have got a very short temper. It’s not made me a better person, that’s for sure.”

In March, Irwin gave a health update, telling The Sun: “I’m weak now, fragile and my memory is terrible… but I’m still here.”

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