The funeral of radio great James Whale has taken place in Maidstone, Kent, as mourners from the world of showbiz and politics said goodbye to the popular broadcaster
Friends, family and colleagues turned out to remember broadcasting legend Jame Whale as he was laid to rest this afternoon.
The radio titan died last month aged 74 following a long and brave battle with cancer. The former Celebrity Big Brother star had been diagnosed with kidney cancer back in 2000, but after being given the all-clear he announced five years ago the disease had returned.
Since he death four weeks ago, tributes have flooded in and today those closest to him gathered together for his funeral in Kent. Politician Nigel Farage, fellow presenter Eamonn Holmes and singing star Matt Goss were among those paying their respects to James at St Nicolas church in Maidstone.
READ MORE: James Whale’s final words about ‘hard’ months and Christmas sadness in posthumous columnREAD MORE: James Whale dead: Kidney cancer symptoms you should know include subtle urine colour change
Friends Lizzy Cundy and Bobby Davro also gathered with his family and other mourners at the service. A wake was later held for the popular entertainer – awarded a richly-deserved MBE in the New Year Honours, recognising his extraordinary contribution to to his industry and charity during his lifetime.
He will leave much of his estate to his wife Nadine, as well as giving his two children some money as well. Tragic James spoke about his Christmas regrets before joking about hanging out with some broadcasting heroes in the sky as his typically light-hearted final words were revealed weeks after his death.
In his posthumous last column for the Daily Express, which was written in the weeks before his death, James offered a departing message and heartbreakingly told fans that he didn’t want to die. He reflected on his extraordinary life and his fight against illness as he typically offered some final political thoughts.
“If you’re reading this then I’m dead,” he bluntly started his last article for the publication. “I’ve always wanted to write that. Well, obviously not always. But, bear with me because there’s something very tempting, after more than half a century as a journalist and broadcaster, of having the final word!
“And this I suppose is it, my friends. You’re reading this and I’m in the great radio studio in the sky, hanging out (hopefully) with some of my own broadcasting heroes. ’m writing at the age of 74 facing, probably, the last few weeks of my life. I can’t pretend it’s not hard on me or my lovely wife, Nadine, and my family and friends, too.
“But it feels necessary, and I hope they’ll understand. I’m sure they’ll be chuckling. After all, I couldn’t be silenced in life and, well, even now I’m still banging on! Of course, I don’t want to die. I first beat kidney cancer 25 years ago despite being given a 50-50 chance of survival.
“Then five years ago, my cancer came back and this time round it’s been more of a score-draw. It’s spread to my spine, my brain, all over really. I’ve made a career of cutting people off. It was pretty revolutionary back in the day when I first introduced live phone calls to my late-night show at Metro Radio in Newcastle. Now, I suppose, the plug’s been pulled on me!”
But with the humour soon came heartbreak, and James then spoke about not being alive to see Christmas. “It happens to us all in the end. But without wanting to blow my own trumpet (though if I can’t blow it now, when can I?), I think I’ve probably beaten the odds several times already just by lasting this long.
“It’s safe to say though that I won’t be around to celebrate Christmas and, while that makes me sadder than I can say – there have been plenty of tears – it’s the hand I’ve been dealt.”
“I’d love to be around to see if Reform UK wins the next general election and whether my old friend and sparring partner Nigel Farage can sort out Britain’s many problems; learn whether Keir Starmer even makes it to the elections – let alone Rachel Reeves!
“And, touch wood, to see Ukraine free once again from Russian warmongering. But in the grand scheme of things, I’ve not had a bad run. Even if I’ve not quite made the average age for men of my generation (82, since you ask), I’ve comfortably out-performed the expectations of those born only a decade or so earlier than I was.”
In a statement on the day of his death, TalkTV said: “We are sad to announce that James Whale MBE died earlier today, aged 74, following a lengthy battle with cancer. As a broadcasting legend for over 50 years, James will be missed by so many at TALK and the wider News UK family.”
The news, and his previous diagnosis, raised awareness around kidney cancer. James is said to have been a founding member of the chairt Kidney Cancer UK and was referred to as its lifetime president when he died last month.
James married Nadine Lamont-Brown in 2021, just 14 months after revealing his advanced cancer diagnoses. His late wife Melinda, whom he was married to for 48 years, died of Stage 4 lung cancer in 2018.
James and Melinda had two sons and two grandchildren. Nadine has stood by him through his battle, acknowledging they don’t have the “luxury” of time.
For more information or support about cancer, you can contact Macmillan Cancer Support.
Source: Mirror
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