Alison Hammond is a bubbly and infectious personality – but she suffered heartbreak in 2020 after the loss of her beloved mum.
The Bake Off and This Morning star’s mum died following a battle with lung and liver cancer. But just three months later, Alison was dealt more heartbreak when her father, who lived in Jamaica, also died.
Since then, Alison has been open about the grief she still deals with following the loss of her mum. But how many hours did she spend crying at her mum’s grave? And what did Eamonn Holmes do at the funeral? Keep scrolling to find out…
Alison Hammond on death of her mum
Alison was left heartbroken by her mother’s death in early 2020. She penned on Instagram: “Today I dedicate Valentine’s Day to my beautiful, wonderful mother Maria who passed away from liver and lung cancer. Yesterday my family and I celebrated her amazing life and laid her to rest in a beautiful ceremony she would have been proud of.”
She added: “Thank you mummy for giving me the strength to move forward in the knowledge that you’re ok and with God in Heaven now. I will always remember you and try and make you proud. I love you mum.”
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Alison Hammond on grief
In 2022, Alison appeared on Loose Women where she revealed that the Queen’s death brought up sad memories of her mum’s passing. She revealed: “My mum passed away in 2020, it was a shock. I thought I had grieved but when the Queen died it all came down on me.
“It hit me like a thunderbolt and I had to go to the cemetery.” Alison then shared how she spent six hours in the graveyard crying for her mum.
She explained: “Literally for six hours I was crying. That was my grief and it came two years later. It really surprised me. I was literally floored. Anything anyone said I cried because my mum wasn’t there.”
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Alison Hammond new house
Earlier this year, Alison candidly opened up to fans and shared how she wished her mum was still around as she moved into her new home.
Taking to her Instagram, she share a snap of a huge green garden with hills in the background. Alison penned: “Feeling very emotional knowing that without all your support and love I wouldn’t be looking at this view.”
She went on: “This is my new garden I would draw as a child but never dreamed it would be a reality. Thank you. Wish mum was here to see it.”
Eamonn Holmes’ gesture at funeral
In 2023, Alison opened up about “the most beautiful funeral” her late mum had in February 2020. And it turns out her mother was a fan of former This Morning star Eamonn Holmes who ended up attending and giving a “lovely” speech.
Speaking to Gyles Brandreth on his Rosebud podcast, she said: “We gave her the most beautiful funeral.
“Even Eamonn Holmes came to that, actually. He did a speech, because my mum was obsessed with Eamonn Holmes and I asked him if he’d come. He did a speech, came to the funeral, which was lovely.”
The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up to Cancer airs Sunday (March 31) from 7.40pm on Channel 4.
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