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Ben Shephard 'floored' by grief after losing close friend 'out of the blue'

The TV star opened up about his grief. (Getty Images)
The TV star opened up about his grief. (Getty Images)

Ben Shephard has told how he has been "floored" by the death of his close friend.

The Good Morning Britain presenter said the death came as "a really big shock" and that the grief hits him in waves.

He opened up on the ITV show during a discussion about grief with his co-host Kate Garraway and their guest, the Reverend Richard Coles, who is exploring the subject for a new Channel 4 documentary.

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"I lost a very close friend recently - a really big shock out of the blue - and it was another friend that said that grief is a bit like a wave," Shephard said.

"It hits you suddenly and then it sort of dissipates and then suddenly, randomly, it comes back out of nowhere and it hits you again."

The star said his grief hits him in waves. (ITV)
The star said his grief hits him in waves. (ITV)

The TV star, 47, revealed that the feeling of grief hitting him suddenly is something that he has been experiencing since losing his friend.

"There will be a little moment when all of a sudden I'm floored by a picture that pops up or a tune that suddenly comes on the radio that reminds me of my friend that we lost so dramatically and I'm back there, stuck in that grief," he went on.

Ben Shephard was talking to the Reverend Richard Coles about grief.
Ben Shephard was talking to the Reverend Richard Coles about grief.

"Well, not stuck in that grief," he said.

"In the middle of that grief and the rawness of it."

Former Strictly star Reverend Coles lost his husband David in 2019 and he became a widower at the age of 57.

He will explore the subject of grief and how to live with it positively in a one-off programme entitled Good Grief?

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It is due to air on Channel 4 later this year.

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