Former This Morning host Fern Britton has paid tribute to her “great actor” and “charmer” dad who has passed away at the age of 95.
The presenter and author, 62, took to Twitter to announce the loss of her famous dad, who was best known for his performances in films like The Day of the Jackal and miniseries The Nearly Man in the 1970s.
Fern shared a snap of her father smiling for the camera with his walking stick in hand.
Our father, Tony Britton, died early this morning. Great actor, director and charmer. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest. 👼🏻 pic.twitter.com/QEHel2jOZS
— Fern Britton 💙No tick but the real deal (@Fern_Britton) December 22, 2019
Read more: Fern Britton enjoys night out with former This Morning co-star in sweet pic
She wrote alongside it: “Our father, Tony Britton, died early this morning.
“Great actor, director and charmer.
“May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.”
Her followers wrote messages of support in the comments, with one telling her: “So sorry for your loss, he was a great actor and a lovely man.”
Someone else said: “So sorry for your loss, Fern xx.”
Another wrote, “Sending all my love, Fern, to you and the family. But what a life your dad had” and she replied, “Didn’t he!” with a blowing-kiss emoji.
Didn’t he!! 😘
— Fern Britton 💙No tick but the real deal (@Fern_Britton) December 22, 2019
Tony’s death follows the passing of Fern’s mother in April last year.
She announced the death on social media, sharing a snap of her beloved mum Ruth, whom she said was both “funny” and ferocious”.
Fern captioned the pic: “My Mum. Ruth. Both mother and father to me. Funny, ferocious, and a woman once met, you couldn’t forget. 24.1.24 / 17.4.18 . So brave and uncomplaining. An army sergeant WW2, beauty queen, teacher, and all woman.”
My Mum. Ruth. Both mother and father to me. Funny, ferocious, and a woman once met, you couldn’t forget. 24.1.24 / 17.4.18 . So brave and uncomplaining. An army sergeant WW2, beauty queen, teacher, and all woman. ❤️❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/VhruTL1rXn
— Fern Britton 💙No tick but the real deal (@Fern_Britton) April 17, 2018
Read more: Fern Britton says she’s still recovering from sepsis that nearly killed her in 2016
Fans rallied around Fern several months later, after she shared an emotional message about struggling to deal with her grief.
She told her followers on Twitter she had “hit one of those painful dips” in the grieving process, tweeting: “To everybody who has lost their mum. My mum died 18 weeks ago and tonight I have hit one of those painful dips xx.”
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