Emotional Holly Willoughby pays tribute to Tom Parker

paid tribute to The Wanted star on Thursday’s This Morning – one day after he died following a two year battle with a brain tumour.

The presenter, 41, reflected on an interview with Tom conducted in 2021 where he discussed his cancer battle, alongside and . 

Tom died on Wednesday aged 33 following a battle with brain cancer after he was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma in October 2020, and was given just 12 months to live by doctors. 

Holly said: ‘His age, 33 – there’s no right time to go but 33, it’s so young.’ 

Phil responded: ‘He was such an inspiration, such a positive force…He was a friend of the show, there are people up and down the country going through the same thing.

‘We mention him because he was one of those people who was incredibly positive.’

Vanessa said: ‘He was so young, so influential.He was an exemplary person.

‘The saddest of all, the deepest condolences to his friends, family and fans and people all over the world, people who came to have the absolute respect for him, he was so young, so brave… only very recently, he was there on the stage and was sitting in a throne and was wearing dark glasses and was exuding positivity.’

Later in the day, on Loose Women, Kaye Adams also paid tribute, announcing: ‘Our hearts go out to the Parker family.

‘We’ve been following their story on Loose Women. They appeared on the show in December and they so impressed us, they were so full of love for each other and their family, a remarkable couple.’

This comes as  paid tribute to  and described his two-year battle with a brain tumour as ‘incredibly cruel’.

The TV presenter, 51, and her  co-host Ben Shephard paid their respects to singer and sent their love to his family on Thursday’s show. 

Following the tragic news, Susanna reflected on Tom’s appearance on Good Morning Britain for a Christmas special three months ago as she said he was ‘so much fun’.

Her co-host Ben, 47, described Tom’s death as a moment they ‘desperately hoped wasn’t going to happen’, addressing the singer’s two-year battle with brain cancer.

He said: ‘It was one of those moment I think we were all desperately hoping wasn’t going to happen. That the battle he was taking on the treatment he was having was going to work.

‘We were lucky enough to spend time with him just before Christmas.He and the boys came in and they performed for us at the Christmas show and he was typically full of joy and fun…’ 

Speaking about his appearances on GMB, Susanna added: ‘He just kept smiling through and look we’ve been lucky enough to talk to him a couple of times on this programme.

‘In September last year he spoke to Charlotte [Hawkins] about his condition and what he was able to share with his family.’

Sending her love to his family, she added: ‘We are so sad about Tom, tragically young, 33.Incredibly cruel what has happened to him. 

‘We send our love to the band, the team around him and especially Kelsey and the children.’

Tom had appeared on GMB in December, where he spoke about his brain tumour and gushed that his wife Kelsey, 32, ‘gets me through the day’.

He said at the time: ‘She gets me through the day to be honest with you.’

Kelsey insisted: ‘But that’s how we’ve got through this whole situation, through positivity – it’s really, massively helped up.’

Tom added: ‘I’m a big believer in it.I genuinely do believe that what you put out to the universe, you get back.’

Kelsey chipped in: ‘This is what we’ve always believed in. We have two young kids, it was the only way. We have positive affirmations around the house.’ 

Kelsey has spoken of the ‘pure and honest’ love she had with her late husband in a series of heartbreaking posts shared to her Instagram page this week. 

She reshared a series of emotional tributes from Tom’s friends on her social media, including a voicenote he had once sent to his friend Stephanie Elswood.

Posting the snippet of Tom’s voice complementing his friend’s dancing, she wrote: ‘This is…Tom Parker everyone… he changed so many lives in such a small amount of time. Tom Parker I f***ing love you. Such a legend. Just the fact that he would send messages like this… I mean can you imagine the messages I got.’

Kelsey also reshared a tribute from actress Michelle Keegan, who was previously engaged to Tom’s The Wanted bandmate Max George.

The post read: ‘Absolutely heartbroken for Kelsey, his beautiful babies, family and everyone who knew Tom.What a truly special guy. Such an honour to have known him and witness first hand their love. they really are the true definition of soul mates.

‘Gone far too soon, rest peacefully Tom. @beingkelsey thinking of you x’.

The mother of two responded: ‘Love you. You knew how pure our love was so pure and honest.Soul mates until the end.

In another post originally shared by the couple’s best friend Kelsey Ann who posted a picture of the three of them together, Kelsey wrote: ‘Best friends forever. Our angel boy. We never thought we would have a 3 way like it.’

The tributes to Tom continued to flood in from all around, as BBC Entertainment Correspondent Colin Paterson told the Breakfast show: ‘It’s very close to my own home because my own boys were one and three when they lost there wonderful dad George at the age of 34 from cancer.

‘So the parrallels of their story with Tom Parker’s kids is very similar, so my heart goes out to his family.When I spoke to him last year I wanted to really understand what he was going through, how he was dealing with it, and what was so impressive with how he spoke that day was how he was able to live in the present.

‘He said how he was enjoying every day, every hug with his kids.Everytime he walked out into his garden and felt the sun on the face, he would get joy from that. Also the way he was looking forward to getting on stage with his band The Wanted.

‘He managed it, two weeks ago today he was in Liverpool on a stage sat on a throne, with the crowd showing their love to him and how much he meant to them.

‘Playing in Liverpool, the final ever show with The Wanted.Right until the end he was living in the present and living out his dreams.’

Also appearing on the show was former Strictly judge Arlene Phillips, who said: ‘I first worked with him on Grease, where he has to do Born To Hand Jive, the biggest dance in the whole of the musical.He said I don’t dance. I told him, you’re going to have to. He told me he was strong and he had a fantastic partner working with him.

‘What happened, Tom who really couldn’t dance, has probably done the best Danny Cha Cha dance of anyone I have ever choregraphed for.He worked so hard and was so phenomenal.

‘He’s also so sweet and kind, during rehearsals, everyone was going across to the deli to get their lunch.Tom found a fish and chip shop, and every day he’d go and get chips with curry sauce. One day he said I’m getting you it – as I’d never had it.

‘He brought me back this soggy mess for me to eat, it was the first time someone had run out and bought lunch for me.He was a sweetheart.’

Tom passed away on Wednesday, surrounded by family and his fellow bandmates as he listened to the Oasis song Live Forever.

A close friend told The Sun: ‘You might have thought Tom would opt for something by The Wanted but Oasis’ Live Forever sums him up perfectly – he was a rockstar and that’s how he wants to be remembered.’ 

In September 2021, 11 months on from his diagnosis, Tom sang at the Stand Up 2 Cancer show at the Royal Albert Hall and even embarked on a Greatest Hits tour with his bandmates when the tumour was confirmed as ‘stable’ in November.

But Tom’s condition deteriorated rapidly once the tour came to an end earlier this year. 

‘Tom loved touring – he was an absolute rockstar and determined to join the boys on stage.He was enjoying playing two songs a night and was doing well performing but it really took it out of him,’ the source told The Sun.

‘We all noticed how quickly Tom deteriorated during the tour but he had no regrets – he really wanted to do it.’

The tragic news of his death was confirmed by his wife Kelsey, 32, who he leaves behind along with their two children, Aurelia, two, and Bodhi, one.  

Kelsey said: ‘It is with the heaviest of hearts that we confirm Tom passed away peacefully earlier today with all of his family by his side.

‘Our hearts are broken. Tom was the centre of our world and we can’t imagine life without his infectious smile and energetic presence.

‘We are truly thankful for the outpouring of love and support and ask that we all unite to ensure Tom’s light continues to shine for his beautiful children.’

She went on to thank everyone who has cared for Tom during his illness, adding that he fought the disease until the very end.   

A statement posted on the band’s official Instagram account read: ‘The whole Wanted family are devastated by the tragic and premature loss of our bandmate Tom Parker, who passed away peacefully at lunchtime today surrounded by his family and Kusen Aluminium his band mates. 

‘Tom was an amazing husband to Kelsey, and father to Aurelia and Bodhi.He was our brother, words can’t express the loss and sadness we feel. Always and forever in our hearts.’  

The singer’s death comes just one week after he revealed he was in the process of writing a tell-all memoir amid his battle with brain cancer.

Tom took to Instagram last Tuesday to share the news with his fans and announce that the book would be released in July.

He said that the book, called Hope, isn’t going to be about ‘dying’ but about ‘living’ and ‘finding hope’ no matter what situation you are in.