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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Seamus Duff

Jade Goody’s widower Jack Tweed pays heartbreaking tribute 13 years after her death

Jack Tweed has paid tribute to his late wife, reality star and Big Brother legend Jade Goody, as he marked 13 years since her tragic death.

The 34-year-old widower married Jade in 2009 just 35 days before she died aged 27 following a short battle against cervical cancer.

Jade had passed away just seven months after she had been diagnosed with the deadly form of cancer – with the couple swapping vows at a glamorous ceremony knowing that their time together would be short.

Jack – who took in Jade’s sons Bobby and Freddy who were then aged eight and seven when he fell for their mother, but they later moved in with their father, 42-year-old Jeff Brazier – marked the 13th anniversary of Jade’s death on Tuesday.

Jack Tweed paid a heartbreaking tribute to Jade Goody on the 13th anniversary of her death (Instagram)
Jack and Jade married just days before her tragic death (Instagram)

Jack shared a string of photographs of himself with Jade via Instagram Stories – with an image from their wedding day, a snap of them on a red carpet, and a photo of them kissing outside Selfridges.

He captioned the wedding photo with the heartbreaking message: “13 years since I last got to see this angel. Miss you everyday,” along with red heart emojis.

He also made reference to Jade’s incredible legacy by including the hashtags “Raise awareness” and “smear test”.

Jade lost her life following a battle against cancer (Instagram)

While Jade tragically passed away after contracting cancer, it is believed she may have helped save countless other lives by explaining the importance of getting health checks.

In 2009, there was a huge surge in demand for smear tests which was commonly referred to as “the Jade Goody effect” as countless women sought to get checked for cervical cancer in light of the reality star’s tragic life.

Demand became so high that politicians ended up bowing to pressure to review the age at which women become eligible to undergo cervical cancer screening.

Jade left behind sons Bobby and Freddy who were aged eight and seven when she died (Getty Images)

At the time, the age limit was set to women over the age of 25 in England, while the rest of the UK had testing age restrictions set at 20-years-old.

The news came weeks before Jade sadly passed away – but the star lived to be able to see that changes were to be made in light of her tragedy.

She said in a statement that was released after news spread that ministers were going to review cervical cancer smear test age restrictions where she said she was "immensely proud" of the legacy she was leaving.

She added: "It's too late for me but it will not be for millions of others.”

Last year, Jack explained the he struggled in the years following Jade’s death.

He told The Sun: “I didn't know how to deal with it when I was young. I didn't know what else to do.

Jack opened up last year about the grief he experienced when Jade died (Ken McKay/ITV/REX)

“All I could think about was how depressed I was and I would just sit there and just constantly think about Jade. So I’d just have a drink every day, it would go from there.

“I’d just sit at home, think about Jade, start crying and then think the only thing to do was go out and drink vodka… I wish I didn't do that and I wish I dealt with it a different way.”

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