‘They were his brothers’: Tom Parker’s widow Kelsey says her late husband ‘needed’ The Wanted to get back together and ‘feel strength’ from other band members before his death
Tom Parker’s widow Kelsey has opened up about the importance of The Wanted getting back together before her late husband’s passing in an interview on Friday.
The mother-of-two called the other band members his ‘brothers’, adding that Tom needed to ‘feel that strength from them’ as he battled a brain tumour.
Tom passed away from stage four glioblastoma brain cancer at the age of 33 on March 30 after being diagnosed with the illness in October 2020.
‘They were his brothers’: Tom Parker’s widow Kelsey has opened up about the importance of The Wanted getting back together before his passing in an interview on Friday
Candid: The mother-of-two called the other band members his ‘brothers’, adding that he needed to ‘feel that strength from them’ (pictured in 2021)
Speaking to the White Wine Question Time podcast, Kelsey added that her late husband ‘loved’ work and music and was pleased the band reunited earlier this year.
Kelsey told host Kate Thornton that the singer ‘needed that band to get back together’ after they announced their temporary break in 2014.
She continued: ‘I think even for him to get through the whole treatment, just everything…
‘I think the the band getting back together was was massive for him…
‘He loved music’: Kelsey told host Kate Thornton that the singer – who passed away from state four glioblastoma brain cancer at the age of 33 – ‘needed that band to get back together’
‘Tom loved work, he loved music. He needed that band to get back together. I think he needed the boys to be behind him again, to feel that strength from them.
‘Because obviously, they were his brothers.’
Tom was given just 12 months to live when he was first diagnosed with cancer and passed away on March 30, after getting the chance to perform again with his bandmates Max George, Nathan Sykes, Jay McGuiness and Siva Kaneswaran.
Opening up: She continued: ‘I think even for him to get through the whole treatment, just everything…I think the the band getting back together was was massive for him…’
The Wanted released their first album in October 2010, which reached number four in the UK Albums Chart and created three UK top 20 singles.
In September 2021, the band announced that they would return for a new album and live show, seven years after announcing their separation, with proceeds going towards cancer research.
Tom and the other band-members had originally planned to reform for their 10th anniversary in 2020, before the global pandemic forced them to delay the announcement.
The group suffered a further setback after Tom revealed he had been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour later that year.
The news prompted him to stage a huge pop concert at London’s cavernous Royal Albert Hall to raise crucial funding for more medical research after he discovered only one percent of the National Cancer research budget went to researching new treatments for brain tumours.
After contacting his four former bandmates, the group made the decision to kick-start their reunion plans.
In March, Tom made an emotional surprise appearance at a The Wanted show in Bournemouth as he popped up onstage seated in a throne.
He had just returned from Spain over the weekend following more than twenty days of treatment at a specialist clinic there to get him match fit for the Wanted Reunion UK tour.
Inspiring: Speaking to the White Wine Question Time podcast, the star added that her late husband ‘loved’ work and music
Fans couldn’t believe it when Tom turned up for the third gig of the tour in the seaside resort after missing the band’s opening show in Glasgow and subsequent show in Newcastle.
The band then wrote on their official Twitter account: ‘Like the king that he is! The f***ing legend that is Tom Parker. Bournemouth that was so special!!!’
As fans shouted out his name, Nathan told the audience: ‘As you guys can probably tell there is a massive space in this band tonight. And we love Tom as much as you do.
Sad: Kelsey has erected a plaque in her late husbands honour on her family bench – and says it’s a place she and her children can now visit
Speaking on the podcast, Kelsey added that while the other band members still ‘all reach out’, it’s difficult to know what to say.
She continued: ‘I just think they don’t really know sometimes what to say because what can they say? They’re feeling the pain from a different place to me.
‘When they get back on stage and sing again, that’s just going to be so painful for them.’
Kelsey also said the boys’ connection was special, remarking: ‘They got put into a band together but they were so lucky that they did genuinely really get on.’
It comes as Tom’s widow recently mounted a plaque in her late husbands honour on her family bench – and says it’s a place she and her children can now visit.
Kelsey, who is mother to Tom’s two children Aurelia, three, and Bodhi, 20 months, joined her mum, grandparents and other family members to put up the touching message on the wooden bench.
The seat was initially erected to commemorate her late Uncle Neil who also tragically died of cancer aged just 35.
Plaque: Kelsey, who is mother to Tom’s two children Aurelia, three, and Bodhi, 20 months, joined her mum, grandparents and other family members to put up the touching message on the wooden bench
The shiny plaque which she screwed onto the left hand side of the bench reads: ‘Thomas Anthony Parker – Loving Husband, Son & Father Forever In Our Hearts 04.08.88 – 30.03.22’
Kelsey who filmed herself and family sitting on the bench as they celebrated Tom’s life to the soundtrack of Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds, with the lyrics Don’t Worry About A Thing, wrote: ‘One thing that did go well today is that we finally got Tom’s plaque on our family bench.’
‘We created this place for my Uncle Neil who sadly died 16 years ago today, also to cancer (F you cancer!) at the age of 35.
Family: The seat was initially erected to commemorate her late Uncle Neil who also tragically died of cancer aged just 35
Important: It will act as a place that the family can come and visit to remember Tom and his life (pictured are his two children)
Kind: The shiny plaque which she screwed onto the left hand side of the bench reads: ‘Thomas Anthony Parker – Loving Husband, Son & Father Forever In Our Hearts 04.08.88 – 30.03.22’
‘We have loved coming here to remember him, honour him, think about our precious memories with him so making this Tom’s space too just felt so right.’
To have somewhere that me and our kids can come to for Tom means the world and I wanted to share it with all of you #positiveparkers #3littlebirds.’
Kelsey has worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the illness and keep her husbands memory alive – and revealed she has a secret project coming up next week.
It comes after late last month Kelsey threw a magnificent princess party for her daughter Aurelia’s 3rd birthday as she celebrated without her dad for the first time.
Plan: Kelsey who filmed herself and family sitting on the bench as they celebrated Tom’s life, wrote: ‘One thing that did go well today is that we finally got Tom’s plaque on our family bench’
She said: ‘We created this place for my Uncle Neil who sadly died 16 years ago today, also to cancer (F you cancer!) at the age of 35’
Kelsey took to Instagram to show she had pulled out all the stops for the special occasion with Aurelia getting a visit from Disney princess’ Elsa, Cinderella and Rapunzel.
The birthday girl enjoyed singing her favourite songs with the characters before blowing out the candles on her pink castle cake.
Aurelia looked adorable in a pink ruffled dress while sporting silver sandals and a cute bow in her hair.
Love: She continued: ‘We have loved coming here to remember him, honour him, think about our precious memories with him so making this Tom’s space too just felt so right’
Meanwhile, Kelsey looked stunning in an off the shoulder peach ruffled dress to match her daughter, while wearing white wedge heels on her feet.
Kelsey has revealed that she will have her late husband’s ashes made into ‘special’ jewellery for their two young children.
And now Kelsey says she will gift the meaningful tokens to her children when the time is right, as well as to the late singer’s mother Noreen.
She told The Sun: ‘It will be something really special the kids can have and it will be given to them at a certain time, but I don’t know when yet,’ she explained.’
RIP: Kelsey has revealed that she will have her late husband’s ashes made into ‘special’ jewellery for their two young children (pictured in 2021)
Adding: ‘They have lost their dad so they need me to be as strong as possible for them at the moment. I think people are like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe she is actually dealing with it,’ but I don’t really have any other choice but to deal with it’.
It comes after Kelsey discussed the children’s first ‘hard’ Father’s Day without Tom in a recent heart-breaking Instagram video.
In the clip the actress revealed she was wearing her late husband’s T-shirt and believed he would be ‘shining on us’ throughout the day.
She began: ‘Hi guys. Say hi guys, both. We just wanted to jump on and say a massive, massive thank you for all of your messages today. Don’t we? We want to say thank you.
‘Today will be a hard day for us as a family but the sun is out shining, he’s out there shining, isn’t he daddy’s shining on us today.
‘I’m wearing his top today because if you’re having a bad day, guys, just smile and it will make everything better.
‘And those are chicken pox on his face, he’s got the pox, we’re just gonna spend a lovely day together as a family today.
‘Aurelia has picked out her favourite dress and Bodhi has got his superhero…’
In her caption, she wrote: ‘I had an inbox full of lovely messages before 9am this morning and I can’t tell you how much it helped me put on my best smile and get up this morning.
‘Father’s Day is not easy for everyone but it’s a chance to celebrate all the amazing Dads out there including Tom and celebrating him is currently my favourite thing to do.
‘We got this #positiveparkers #fathersday #tomparker #instacommunity.’
Staying strong: It comes after late last month Kelsey threw a magnificent princess party for her daughter Aurelia’s 3rd birthday as she celebrated without her dad for the first time
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