Rob Delaney opens up on friendship with Jason Watkins after child bereavement
The actors have supported each other through grief after the deaths of their young children.
What did you miss?
Rob Delaney has opened up on the close bond he has formed with Jason Watkins after both going through the bereavement of losing a child.
Delaney's son Henry died from a brain tumour at the age of two in 2018 and Watkins' daughter Maude died of sepsis in 2011, also aged two.
Comedian and Catastrophe star Delaney told The One Show how close he had become to Watkins and his family as they supported each other through grief.
What, how, and why?
Monday's One Show opened with an emotional film from Line of Duty star Jason Watkins, who had been to spend time with a walking group run by charity Strong Men which supports men who have been bereaved.
The actor spoke about his daughter Maude, who died of sepsis aged two in 2011, and admitted to feeling anxious at the thought of opening up on his grief to the group.
During the walk, he told one man whose son had died: "Loss is very physical because your heart breaks, so it's like someone is pressing on your heart."
Talking and reaching out to others is important when things get tough ??
In a powerful film, actor @Jason__Watkins meets a support group who are coming to terms with grief through walking and friendship.
Watch it in full on #TheOneShow ?? https://t.co/KekQ2yMx3r pic.twitter.com/2N8KR7LVqY— BBC The One Show (@BBCTheOneShow) September 9, 2024
After showing Watkins' film, The One Show hosts Alex Jones and Roman Kemp introduced their guest Rob Delaney, who revealed he had become close friends with Watkins after going through a similar experience.
The US star, who now lives in the UK with his wife and their children, lost his son Henry, also aged two, in 2018 to a brain tumour.
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Delaney said: "Jason doesn't live too far from me and he and his wife Clara have been incredibly kind to my wife and me and our kids.
"He's been amazing to me in the six years since my son died. We hang out a lot together and I love him so much. Being able to talk about that stuff, that's how I survive, I don't really know how I would otherwise, so he's a real living example for me."
Jason Watkins' campaign for sepsis treatment
Last year, The Crown star talked about his campaign to improve sepsis care in memory of Maude, which drew more focus after the Government's introduction of Martha's Rule.
It gives patients the right to a second opinion if they believe their concerns about sepsis symptoms are being dismissed by NHS staff and was campaigned for by the mother of 13-year-old Martha Mills, who died in 2021 after a missed sepsis diagnosis.
Speaking about an NHS ombudsman report into sepsis care late last year, Watkins told Good Morning Britain: "It was a real body-blow to think that, just a few weeks ago, the ombudsman’s report on sepsis care said that ‘nothing had really changed’ so I took it really personally.
"I had a couple of really difficult days because you feel lost. I felt a bit like a victim again – of sepsis, and for parents who have lost loved ones. Because people who have lost loved ones feel that; you feel that fate has dealt you a horrific blow."
The One Show airs on BBC One at 7pm on weekdays.
