Richard Madeley opens up about 'heartbreak' following the miscarriage of his and wife Judy Finnigan's first child

15 October 2018 at 7:05 am

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan (Credit: PA)

Former This Morning host Richard Madeley has revealed the heartbreak he and his broadcaster wife Judy Finnigan suffered following the miscarriage of their first child.

As part of Baby Loss Awareness Week, he wrote in the Daily Telegraph about their ‘devastation’ at the news.

“Judy was 16 weeks pregnant when she went for a routine scan. It was our first baby together (she had twins from her first marriage) and there had been no cause for concern,” he wrote.

“But I’ll never forget the nurse hurrying towards me, an agonised expression on her face: ‘Mr Madeley, you need to come this way…’

“I joined Judy in the examination room. Tears were streaming down her face: ‘It’s died, Richard. It’s died.’

“It was utterly devastating: no warning; no earlier, gentle, indication of the possibility of catastrophe. Our baby had just died. And he was still in Judy’s womb.”

Madeley goes on to speak of the heartbreak of seeing Judy then induced into labour.

“My heart broke for her as I waited outside the delivery room,” he went on. “What a dreadful experience: to go through the motions of childbirth, knowing what the grim outcome would be.

“A day or so later, Judy was discharged and we went home, baby-less. It was horrible: empty, cold, defeated and drear.”

Madeley and Finnigan went on to have two children together, Jack and Chloe, who joined her twin sons Dan and Tom from her first marriage.

“Jack was born on May 19, 1986. He’s a handsome, successful businessman today,” Madeley goes on.

“As Judy said to him this summer, when we were discussing our lost child: “The thing is Jack, if I’d had him, you wouldn’t be here, would you?

“We have so little control over these things, so we must somehow find acceptance. But as fathers, husbands and partners, our role when tragedy strikes is abundantly clear: support, sustain, cherish and encourage.

“Yes, of course it’s our loss, too. But it’s infinitely worse for the woman. Uphold her. Love her. But accept that you need to grieve as well.”