Martin Lewis broke down in tears during an appearance on Wednesday’s Good Morning Britain, as he discussed the tragic death of his mother in a road traffic accident.
The money guru, 50, admitted his grief was triggered after watching footage of Prince Harry’s procession behind his mother Diana’s coffin during her funeral in 1997.
Revealing that his mother died just three days before he turned 12, Martin compared his own grief to that of Harry’s, whose mum Princess Diana was killed in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Moving: Martin Lewis broke down in tears during an appearance on Wednesday’s Good Morning Britain, as he discussed the tragic death of his mother in a road traffic accident
Martin’s mother Susan Lewis was killed by a lorry while out horse riding with his sister, and the money-saving expert struggled to hide his grief while discussing the upcoming procession for Queen Elizabeth II.
Martin told Susanna Reid: ‘I wasn’t going to say this on air but it resonates with me very powerfully for someone who lost his mother at the same age as Harry in a road traffic accident.
‘I find it very difficult to watch. Thank goodness I wasn’t made to walk behind. I didn’t even go. It does bring back some…’
What’s going on? The money guru was also briefly absent later in the show following an ad break, leaving Susanna Reid to present the programme solo
Sad: Martin reflected on his mother Susan’s death while discussing the upcoming procession for Queen Elizabeth II, after she passed away last week
Sad: Revealing that his mother died just three days before he turned 12, Martin compared his own grief to that of Princes Harry and William (pictured) whose mum Princess Diana was killed
Choking on his words, Martin asked Susanna to carry on while he composed himself, and she replied: ‘Oh Martin. When events like this happen they are very triggering of private grief. We totally understand.’
Later in the show, Martin was absent from his seat following a break for the local news, leaving Susanna to read the autocue solo.
The camera zoomed in on her while Martin returned to his set, though no reason was given for his absence.
Emotional: Martin told Susanna: ‘I wasn’t going to say this on air but it resonates with me very powerfully for someone who lost his mother at the same age as Harry in a road traffic accident’
Difficult: ‘I find it very difficult to watch. Thank goodness I wasn’t made to walk behind. I didn’t even go. It does bring back some…’ he said before choking on his words
Tough time: Choking on his words, Martin asked Susanna to carry on while he composed himself, and she noted it was ‘understandable’ that he would have such a reaction
On Wednesday members of the Royal Family will walk behind The Queen’s coffin when it leaves Buckingham Palace to travel to Westminster Hall to lie in state.
Among the royals taking part will be Princes Harry and William, who both walked behind their mother Diana’s coffin during her funeral 25 years ago.
In June 2020, Lewis recalled how he didn’t leave his house for six years after his mother’s death.
Where has he gone? Later in the show, Martin was absent from his seat following an ad break, leaving Susanna to read the autocue solo
Odd: The camera zoomed in on her while Martin returned to his set, though no reason was given for his absence
Speaking on BBC Four’s Desert Island Discs at the time, he told how his ‘childhood ended that day’ and that he developed crippling anxiety leaving him unable to leave the house as he ‘couldn’t cope’ with the thought of something else bad happening.
He said: ‘My mum was there one day and she wasn’t the next and that was it. This was 1984 and you didn’t have counselling. My childhood ended that day and I am still not over it.’
Revealing that he stayed home all the time except when attending school, he went on: ‘I never left the house, couldn’t leave the house.
‘Because I wasn’t at home when it happened to my mum and I couldn’t cope with the thought of leaving the house because something else could happen.’
It’s sad: In June 2020, Lewis recalled how he didn’t leave his house for six years after his mother’s death
Devastating: Speaking on BBC Four’s Desert Island Discs at the time, he told how his ‘childhood ended that day’ and that he developed crippling anxiety
The money guru, who is Jewish, told how he would pretend to be busy with religious events to avoid socialising with his peers outside of school.
‘It was very difficult because when all my friends from school were going to parties and meeting girls and things like that, which I’d have liked to do, I couldn’t cope with it.’
He added: ‘It was a complete lie, I was a little boy. I was a little boy struggling to deal with something that nobody should be dealing with at that age.’
Ordeal: Lewis previously spoke of his grief in an interview on Loose Women where he admitted he found it difficult to open up about the ordeal for decades
Lewis previously spoke of his grief in an interview on Loose Women where he admitted he found it difficult to open up about the ordeal for decades.
‘I am still now 35 years later deeply scarred,’ he told the panel. ‘It was a defining point in my life.
‘It changed the way I act and behave. It was devastating. ‘We didn’t know what to do. It was the mid 80s, you didn’t do that type of thing. My father, my sister and I were incredibly wounded for such a long time.’
‘Defining’: He said: ‘I am still now 35 years later deeply scarred,’ he told the panel. ‘It was a defining point in my life’
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk