A Place In the Sun’s Jonnie Irwin ‘Overwhelmed’ By Support From Fans Following Terminal Cancer Diagnosis

A Place In The Sun presenter Jonnie Irwin has thanked fans for their support after he went public about his terminal cancer diagnosis earlier this week.

The 48-year-old, who has been a regular host of the Channel 4 property show since 2004 and also presents the BBC’s Escape To The Country, said he hopes sharing his terminal lung cancer diagnosis will inspire others to “make the most of every day”, revealing: “I don’t know how long I have left.”

On Tuesday, Jonnie shared a photo of himself enjoying the countryside along with a message to fans thanking for them for their “overwhelming” support.

“Overwhelmed by your kind messages, not had the chance to read them all yet but I assure you I will,” Jonnie wrote.

“Yesterday I needed some headspace so I escaped to the country with my brother in law and his dog. It was a tonic.”

In an interview with Hello magazine, Jonnie said his lung cancer had spread to his brain.

The dad-of-three revealed the first warning sign of his illness came while he was filming A Place In The Sun in August 2020 in Italy, when his vision became blurry while driving.

“Within a week of flying back from filming, I was being given six months to live,” he said.

“I had to go home and tell my wife, who was looking after our babies, that she was on her own pretty much. That was devastating.

“All I could do was apologise to her. I felt so responsible.”

Jonnie, who shares three-year-old son Rex and two-year-old twins Rafa and Cormac with his wife Jessica, said he had chosen to keep his illness private until now.

He said: “It’s got to the point now where it feels like I’m carrying a dirty secret, it’s become a monkey on my back.

“I hope that by shaking that monkey off I might inspire people who are living with life-limiting prospects to make the most of every day, to help them see that you can live a positive life, even though you are dying.

“One day, this is going to catch up with me, but I’m doing everything I can to hold that day off for as long as possible.

“I owe that to Jess and our boys. Some people in my position have bucket lists, but I just want us to do as much as we can as a family.”

Jonnie has continued to work as much as possible.

He said: “I don’t know how long I have left, but I try to stay positive and my attitude is that I’m living with cancer, not dying from it.

“I set little markers, things I want to be around for. I got into the habit of saying ‘Don’t plan ahead because I might not be well enough.’

“But now I want to make plans. I want to make memories and capture these moments with my family because the reality is, my boys are going to grow up not knowing their dad and that breaks my heart.”