Phil Spencer has opened up about his parents' tragic deaths in a new interview. Speaking to Mail Online, the presenter, 54, reflected on the loss of his beloved mum and dad, following a car accident in August 2023.
© Ken McKay/ShutterstockAcknowledging the support he's received from fans, Phil said: "I feel a lot of gratitude to people for the thousands of kind, supportive messages I got. The whole thing was overwhelming, but that blew me away. People were very loving and thoughtful."
During the interview, he was joined by his good friend, and co-star, Kirstie Allsopp, 52. "So many people felt linked to Phil," she explained. "He posted a beautifully written account of what had happened on Instagram, in a very unguarded and honest way.
"I was full of admiration for the way in which he and the family dealt with the whole thing. He negotiated it without any anger or resentment towards those people who were curious. He told them what happened."
Phil's parents, Anne, 82 and David, 89, passed away last year after their car toppled over a bridge and into the river at their Canterbury farm.
Announcing the news on Instagram, Phil wrote: "Very sadly both of my amazing parents died on Friday. As a family we are all trying to hold onto the fact Mum and Dad went together and that neither will ever have to mourn the loss of the other one. Which is a blessing in itself.
"Although they were both on extremely good form in the days before (hence the sudden idea to go out to lunch), Mum's Parkinson's and Dad's Dementia had been worsening and the long-term future was set to be a challenge.
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"So much so that Mum said to me only a week ago that she had resigned to thinking 'Now it looks like we will probably go together'. And so they did. That was what God had planned for them - and it was a good plan."
Explaining that "the car, going very slowly, toppled over a bridge on the farm drive," Phil added that there were no physical injuries.
© Instagram"Their carer was in the car and managed to climb out of a back window so the alarm was raised quite quickly," he noted. "As many farmers do - my brother had a penknife and so was able to cut the seat belts - he pulled them out of the river but they never regained consciousness.
"Although desperately sad and shocked beyond all belief - all family are clear that if there can ever be such a thing as having a 'good end' - this was it. It feels horrendous right now, but after almost 60 years of marriage - to die together on the farm they so loved will, I know, be a comfort in the future. Mum and Dad are together which is precisely where they would have wanted to be."
