Jane McDonald opens up about life after loss in heartbreaking Loose Women chat

Jane McDonald opened up on Loose Women on Friday about her hopes after suffering devastating losses in her life.

The singer and TV presenter recounted the heartbreak of losing her father in 1993, followed by the death of her beloved mother in December 2018, whom she lived with until she was 45. Merely three years thereafter, Jane faced another blow as her long-term partner Eddie Rothe passed away at the age of 67.

On the 25th anniversary show, she shared: "If I could get my mother and Ed back, I would in a heartbeat. But I can't. You've got to realise that life goes on and I want to live. I love life. We don't know how many days we've got and Ed died very young. I want to just do everything I want to do. I'm moving forward and taking them with me."

The Yorkshire-born star then spoke about the loss of her partner during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, acknowledging a silver lining in the tragic event as it allowed them valuable time together.

She said: "As daft as it sounds, I'm thankful it was during Covid because I was there with him. Nobody else was. But that was the hardest thing. I had no nurses or doctors come in.

"I had to learn how to do it all myself. I had him at home as long as I could. Then I took him to the Wakefield Hospice, which is a beautiful place. I'll be forever grateful to them. I was with him all the time there."

Jane also mentioned how she felt about moving on and the prospect of finding new love since the passing of her partner last year, reports the Mirror.

"I'm not bothered. I'm really not. I don't feel like I need someone in my life to make it fulfilled. We have a coping mechanism. I have a great group of girlfriends now, who are all in the same situation, we have a great time, we go out, we have dinner, drinks, parties round each others' houses. We're all in the same boat and it's lovely to know that there's someone there that you can call at three o'clock in the morning and say, 'I'm having a bad day.' I don't feel like I need anyone," she remarked.

"I'm grateful for what I had. I've turned it round in my head and I am so grateful that I had those wonderful years and I think grateful sort of cancels out everything else. I think back now with such joy and such love and that's how I progress now."

Yet the former Loose Women panellist acknowledged the struggle, noting: "It's a journey. All the things you thought you were going to do, but you have to make a new life. It's like starting again and that's frightening for anyone. But we all find our way."

Loose Women is on ITV weekdays at 12.30pm and on ITVX