Former BBC Breakfast presenter Nina Warhurst has shared a heartfelt tribute following the loss of her father, Chris.
After announcing the news that he'd passed away on Wednesday 2 July, Nina took to Instagram to share a reflective tribute to her father, who had been diagnosed with dementia in 2022.
The post featured pictures from Chris' celebration of life service, and included photos of the family's children in Manchester United football kits with "Warhurst" printed on the back.
Nina previously shared with fans that her dad had attended Manchester United games at Old Trafford for 70 years.
Heart-wrenching tribute
"Ah Dad," Nina began in the caption of the post, before continuing: "You'd have been embarrassed at all the attention."
"But you'd have loved the kids in football strips. You'd have loved the effort people made to come from far and wide. You'd have loved that everyone called you a gentleman, and everyone had a funny story.
"You'd have loved that your best pal who's a City fan wore a United scarf. You'd have loved that we packed out your old local and then celebrated you into the night. You'd have loved the buffet.
"You'd have loved that all your kids remembered your most important life lesson – 'before you complain, count your blessings.' You'd love that I used to think this was a simple approach to life – but now I realise it takes strength and practise.
"As does your second lesson – 'find the funny.' Even in death we laughed and laughed."
© TwitterGentle and constant
Nina continued: "I hope you knew how much we learned from you. I hope you knew we recognised the importance of love that is quiet and gentle and constant.
"We missed you that day – how could you be the one person missing?… but you are vivid to us every day. I hope you know you will never die, because you are part of us forever. I know it xxxxxxxxx"
© InstagramSupport from friends
Nina's former BBC Breakfast co-host Jon Kay was one of the many people sharing their condolences for Nina in the comments. He wrote: "Beautiful, Nina. You did him proud. As ever x"
TV presenters Helen Skelton and Stacey Dooley also commented with heart emojis to show their support.
The news of his passing
Nina announced the news of her father's passing on 6 July, with a black and white picture of her holding her father's hand.
In the Instagram post's caption, Nina shared: "My Dad died on Wednesday night," before saying he was surrounded by her, her mum and her sisters.
She continued: "He drifted away gently with me and Amy holding him and telling him to 'go on ahead. We’ll see you there soon.'"
The TV presenter described it as "a gentle end to a gentle life," filled with "so much love and laughter and sunshine across days I'll never forget."
While admitting "I can't quite accept that's real yet," Nina went on to name the care staff and residents who spent time with her father when she couldn't during his final days.
