Singer Gary Barlow has extended his appreciation to well-wishers following the death of his fourth child. The pop legend and his wife Dawn tragically lost their baby Poppy after she was stillborn at eight and a half months. The couple released a statement saying: "Dawn and I are devastated to announce that we've lost our baby.
"Poppy Barlow was delivered stillborn on August 4th in London. Our focus now is giving her a beautiful funeral and loving our three children with all our hearts. "We'd ask at this painful time that our privacy be respected." Messages of support have now flooded in for the star and his family, prompting him to express his gratitude. "Your kind words and lovely messages are overwhelming. Thank you." He wrote on Twitter. Leading the tributes were his Take That bandmates. When the news broke, Robbie Williams – himself expecting a child with wife Ayda Fields – said: "My thoughts are with Gary, Dawn and family right now." Caring fans have also set up a charity fund on justgiving.com in memory of little Poppy. Their campaign aims to raise £100,000 for the stillbirth and neonatal death charity Sands. Meanwhile, Gary's work commitments are being scaled down in the wake of the tragedy. As a key judge on X Factor, he was due to film scenes at his home later in the month. But the show's executives have said they will move dates around if their screen mentor needs more time to grieve. Take That were also due to perform at Sunday's Olympics closing ceremony, but there are doubts about whether their show will now go ahead. Organisers are refusing to confirm whether the group will take to the stage.
