Jane McDonald has emotionally revealed how she was unable to write about her late fiancé, Eddie Rothe, with the star having help for a musical tribute to the musician.
Speaking on Lorraine ahead of her appearance at Mighty Hoopla in the Icons slot, Jane spoke about how she handled the grief following Eddie's death in 2021. "I couldn't write about Ed, no," she told host Lorraine Kelly.
"So I was glad that the collaborators came in and helped me do that, because then I was able to not only do it for me, but for everybody else. What you have to remember is, you've joined a club, there's a lot of us out there."
She added: "So now when I'm on stage, I don't sing it about me, I sing it for everybody else's partners. So, that's the way I get through everything."
After the clip was shared on social media, fans rallied around to support Jane, who rose to fame as a singer on cruise ships. Carol Vorderman said: "Ed was so lovely and had the biggest smile ever. He adored Jane and Jane adored him. Always a pleasure in their company, always, love you missus."
A second added: "God, I love that woman, she’s so bloody upbeat & so funny & down to earth!," while a third posted: "Thank you for putting the smiles on our faces and warmth into our hearts, lots of love to you."
Coping with grief
Jane's fiancé Ed died from lung cancer in 2021 aged 67 and, at the time, coronavirus restrictions meant that she was unable to give him the "big tribute" she wanted to.
She subsequently dedicated her 2024 tour to Eddie, telling MailOnline: "It's not a mournful thing. I haven't had a chance to celebrate his life, so here it is. I had 13 amazing years with that man. I think I had the best of him. I'm glad I was privileged enough to have that time. I should be grateful for that."
© InstagramSpeaking to HELLO! in 2024 about how she coped after Eddie's death, Jane said: "It's the biggest shock ever because your life completely changes. You have to rebuild and I was very grateful that I had another life besides Ed. My career was still going on and my friends were there."
Reflecting on the lessons she's taken from it, Jane admitted: "I've learnt nothing really, there's no way of dealing with it. You just have to rebuild [your life] in the best way you can. For me, that's going out and seeing my fans again and saying to those who have gone through the same as me, I know what you're feeling."
