'We will always love you': Simon Thomas emotionally announces his father has passed away aged 78 following tragic death of wife Gemma

• The former Sky presenter, 47, took to Instagram to inform fans of the tragic news
• Sharing a picture of his late father with his mother, Simon wrote in his emotional tribute: 'Goodbye Dad. We will always love you'
• The star did not elaborate on how his father passed and simply chose to say that he had 'been ill'
• Simon's wife Gemma passed away aged just 40 from acute myeloid leukaemia shortly before Christmas 2017 - three days after being diagnosed
• Father-of-one Simon has been raising son Ethan single-handedly after losing his wife Gemma to cancer 

Simon Thomas emotionally announced on Friday that his father has passed away aged 78.  

The former Sky presenter, 47, took to Instagram to inform fans of the tragic news, which comes almost three years after his wife Gemma's death following her battle with a rare form of cancer.

Sharing a picture of his late father with his mother to Instagram, Simon wrote in his emotional tribute: 'Goodbye Dad. We will always love you.

'Perhaps the words of Ethan earlier this week sum it up best when I asked him how he was feeling about Grandpa being ill, he said this: "I feel sad but Grandpa's got lots to be proud of."

'Producing three beautiful children (definitely right on Becky and Hannah), got to marry and spend his whole life with lovely Grandma and spent his life serving God. 

'Farewell Dad. You were the absolute best. We love you xxx 16/12/41 - 29/05/20.'

Simon did not elaborate on how his father passed, and simply chose to say that he had 'been ill'.

Simon's wife Gemma passed away aged just 40 from acute myeloid leukaemia shortly before Christmas 2017 - three days after being diagnosed. 

On Mother's Day he shared a black and white snap of Ethan, nine, and his late mum and revealed the day was 'hard to stomach' following the loss of Gemma. 

Opening his heart on the social media site, Simon wrote: 'We thought she’d always be there to guide you. To be right behind you as you grew, matured and began to spread your wings. 

'We thought the love and wisdom she poured into your life would never cease to flow. We took it for granted that those days wouldn’t end for a long, long time. 

'I feel so blessed that my Mum has always been there for me and that her love and support for me has never diminished. I’m blessed that on this day she is still here to send flowers to and to say thank you, and I love you.'

He continued: 'But I feel heartbroken that for my boy Mother’s Day is forever more going to be a very, very different day. 

'A day when he will remember her and give thanks for all she did for him in those eight short years, but a day that will also be laced with the searing pain of her absence. 

'I’m glad we have a day when we celebrate our mums; but for so many today is going to be really tough.'

Touching on how tough the build up to Mothering Sunday is on both himself and those who've lost someone close, he added: 'The past few weeks of Mother’s Day signs adorning most shops has been hard to stomach. 

'For those you know who will today be missing a mum no longer here, missing a dad who won’t be there to make them feel special, a friend mourning the loss of a son or a daughter, or those enduring the painful, dashed hopes of being a mum - give them a hug. Give them a call. Invite them over. Let them know they’re not alone.'

The former Blue Peter host also uploaded an image which showed a framed photo of Gemma and Ethan, which he captioned: 'Sometimes you’ve got to do things differently. Remembering Mummy and celebrating her precious boy.'

In a column with the Daily Mail, Simon said of his late wife: 'I always knew Gemma would be a great mum — and she was amazing. Over those eight, short years of life with Ethan, I saw a relationship grow that was so special.

'They had the most natural of bonds, and so many of the traits that made Gemma the woman she was, I now see in my boy.

'Her kindness, her sensitivity towards others, her compassion, and her almost limitless patience. He was by no means a mummy's boy, but he was his mummy's boy.'

Simon made his first public appearance with his new partner, 29-year-old Derrina Jebb in March 2019.

Simon struck up a relationship with Derrina in 2018, after meeting through church, and praised her for forming a 'seamless bond' with Ethan. 

Speaking in an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live about his new relationship in November, he said: 'I’m very aware she was someone I didn’t know before and have got to know over the last few weeks and months.

'Right from the early stages – she had this empathy towards me. She’s Christian as well and that’s important to me as a man of faith.

'She’s been an incredible support for me. She was the only person who would always pick up the phone.

'What I saw in her, I saw in Gemma. When she said my phone is always on, she meant it.'