It has been 20 years since the death of much-loved TV presenter Caron Keating, and in an exclusive interview with HELLO!, her mother Gloria Hunniford has shared how she is planning to mark the poignant milestone.
Gloria will gather around 50 family members and friends to remember Caron, who passed away in 2004, aged 41, after a valiant seven-year fight with breast cancer.
© Gloria HunnifordThey will include Caron's two sons Charlie, 29, and Gabriel, 27, and Janet Ellis, who became close to the star when they presented Blue Peter together in the 1980s.
"It was hard to know exactly what to do because I didn't want to do anything that Charlie and Gabriel would find too serious, so I had the idea of gathering Caron's friends," says Gloria, who co-hosts BBC1's Rip Off Britain and makes regular appearances as a panellist on ITV's Loose Women. She has chosen to hold the event at St Peter’s Church in the village of Hever in Kent.
© Gloria Hunniford"The vicar will be there to welcome everybody, then I will say a few words of welcome and Janet will invite friends up to speak."
"Their brief is to talk about what they loved about Caron and the crazy, happy things they used to do together. It will be a lovely chance for Charlie and Gabriel to learn a bit more about Mum and they'll enjoy the stories."
Gloria, who turns 84 this week, has also exclusively opened up her personal family album to HELLO! to mark the anniversary.
© Gloria Hunniford"Sometimes it feels as though 100 years have passed, and other times it feels like six months ago," says Gloria as she shows us her treasure trove of family photos, including several unseen snaps of Caron.
One particularly striking image shows the pair smiling as they wrap their arms around each other against the backdrop of the Australian coast. It was taken at the close of one of Gloria's many visits to Caron and her family when they lived in Australia for three years near the end of her life.
© Gloria Hunniford"I think I'd been weeping. The leaving was terrible because you always thought: 'I wonder when I'll see her again,'" says Gloria. "She loved the freedom of Australia. To be in the sunshine, on the beach and in the water is very healing."
Sharing memories of her daughter is a special thing for Gloria. "I love talking about Caron because it keeps her alive," she says. "I think of Caron hundreds of times every day. I'll think: 'She would have loved that dress or that restaurant.' The time span is very odd because the hurt never goes away, but you do learn to live with it, because you have to."
Photos: Darren Fletcher
To read the rest of this interview, pick up the latest issue of HELLO! on sale in the UK on Monday. You can subscribe to HELLO! to get the magazine delivered free to your door every week or purchase the digital edition online via our Apple or Google apps.
