Heart radio presenter Mark Wright had to force back tears during his show on Tuesday night as he remembered his late uncle, who he tragically lost to the coronavirus pandemic.
The former TOWIE star, who is married to Michelle Keegan, reflected on the one-year anniversary of the first UK lockdown last night, which came into place last March.
Since last year, there has been two more lockdowns in the UK, with the current lockdown expected to completely end on June 21.
He thanked the incredible NHS staff who are working tirelessly around the clock to keep the nation safe, as well as paying tribute to his uncle.
Getting emotional while speaking about his uncle, he said: "It's been so so hard, I mean personally I'm sat here now, one uncle less and it pains me so much to say it, and I've got a lump in my throat right now, but we're going to go through that quickly, and know that it's been so tough for all of us. For different reasons."
He added: "If you haven't lost a loved one, maybe financially, maybe just mentally, not knowing which way to turn, none of us would have ever been able to predict or imagine what’s gone on in this last year.
"So don’t feel bad if you've done something wrong, or you've dealt with it in the wrong way, or you've felt a little bit down, or you've let yourself down, because nobody, I reiterate, would have ever predicted this, but here we are."
Mark went on to praise the NHS, saying they are truly incredible.
He concluded: "I've had moments with my family, yes I've lost someone very special to me, but I've had moments with my family that I'll never be able to replace. I've settled down a little bit in terms of work, and I'm sure you've had these moments too.
"So let's look at it in a positive light and most importantly just know how strong you are and how amazing you are, that you got through this and you did it. You listened and you did what needed to be done to get us to this point where we're this close, this close, and I just want to say thank you and well done.
"Tap yourself on the back and just know how special you are for what you've done and of course a massive thank you to the NHS, you are truly incredible."
*Join Mark Wright on Heart, Monday to Thursday evenings from 7pm-10pm and on Sundays from 12pm-4pm.
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