Watch the heartbreaking moment Max George breaks down in tears as he remembers late The Wanted star Tom Parker
MAX George has broken down in tears while talking about his best friend Tom Parker with his Scared Of The Dark co-stars.
The Wanted star, 34, couldn’t hold back his emotions while recalling the tragic death of his bandmate, who passed away a year ago.
In scenes to air in tonight’s show, Max can be seen telling his new pals about the moment he received a call from Tom’s wife Kelsey to say he had been diagnosed with incurable brain cancer.
Max says: “His second [child] was due a week after he got diagnosed. He had glioblastoma, which is an incurable brain cancer, but it was at Stage 4 when they found it.”
In a piece to camera, Max recalls: “I was shooting a movie and it was the last day of filing and my phone rang and it was Kelsey and I was like, oh that’s a nice surprise. But it obviously it wasn’t and I couldn’t…couldn’t really get…I couldn’t get my head around what she’d just told me. And I don’t think I accepted that.”
As Max’s Scared Of The Dark co-stars, including Scarlett Moffatt and Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne, listened intently, he told them: “Do you know what was lovely, is that people from outside of our group and friends…even they chipped in to help.
“Ed Sheeran did as well. Yeah, that saved Tom’s life probably for like a year.”
Again speaking to camera, he reflects: “How do you deal with it? There’s no cure for that so you just sort of learn to carry on with your life I guess. But deal with it, definitely not. I don’t think I’ll ever be okay with it.”
Clearly touched by Max’s story, Scarlett looked emotional as she told him: “How amazing that you had something that makes you feel so sad that it’s gone.”
He replied: “One of the last things I said to him was — I thanked him for making my life so much better than what it ever could have been, you know, like that whole journey through being in the band. He was my best friend.”
In heartbreaking scenes, Max then breaks down in tears while talking to the camera.
“F***,” he cries. “I just don’t…I don’t…I don’t want it to be like a burden or a thing with anyone else. But it’s hard in there, you know?”
Tom passed away on March 30, 2020 aged just 33.
He had been diagnosed with stage four glioblastoma in October 2020 and was told he had between 12 and 18 months to live.
Tom and his wife Kelsey, who share children Aurelia and Bodhi, were determined to keep positive and even referred to themselves as the ‘Positive Parkers’.
Tom had six rounds of chemotherapy and 30 radiotherapy sessions and, shortly before his death, received treatment in a private hospital in Spain.
Tom then returned to the UK where he managed to join Max and their bandmates on tour in a wheelchair, as he was too weak to stand.
He sadly passed away three weeks later.
Max can be seen talking about Tom in Wednesday night’s Scared Of The Dark on Channel 4.
Taking to Twitter, he told his fans: “Apparently some pretty difficult moments tonight on #ScaredOfTheDark ..
“Not the place i would ever thought about opening up… But sometimes it takes being in a different environment to let some things out. Btw… how class is Gazza?!!!”