He tragically lost his two-year-old son to cancer in January this year.
And now Catastrophe star Rob Delaney has shared a moving photograph of ‘sweet little boy’ Henry, taken shortly before he died, to mark what would have been his third birthday on Monday.
Henry had surgery to remove a brain tumour following his diagnosis in 2016, but the cancer returned in the autumn of 2017, and his devastated father confirmed his death in a Facebook post last February, telling fans he would ‘endeavour to not go mad with grief’.
Delaney, who was born in the US but is based in London, posted a snap of the little boy leaning on a statue of a turtle clutching a toy bus, apparently taken on a family day out.
Delaney, who has two older sons, aged six and five, with his wife said of the photograph: ‘You can see his little tracheostomy tube on his neck and his left eye is turned in due to nerve damage from surgery. He has a bus & a turtle though so he’s happy.’
‘Sweet boy’: The actor and comedian shared a snap of his little boy, Henry, who died in January following a battle with a brain tumour, with his Twitter followers
Henry underwent surgery to remove the tumour, and spent 15 months in hospital while undergoing follow up treatment, but tragically the cancer returned in the autumn of 2017
Delaney, who has over 1.5million Twitter followers, was inundated with messages of support from fans after sharing the post, which has been liked more than 10,000 times.
In the month after Henry’s death, Delaney paid tribute to his ‘smart, funny and mischievous’ child in an emotional Facebook post.
‘Henry was a joy,’ wrote Delaney. ‘He was smart, funny, and mischievous and we had so many wonderful adventures together, particularly after he’d moved home following fifteen months living in hospitals.’
In his message, Delaney, 41, explained that Henry was diagnosed after suffering persistent vomiting and weight loss, shortly after he turned one.
The toddler underwent surgery to remove a tumour in addition to further treatment, spending a gruelling 15 months in hospital. But his family were told his cancer had returned in the autumn of 2017.
‘He was smart and mischievous’: The Catastrophe star, who now lives in London, revealed the devastating news in a Facebook post on Friday (pictured in April 2016)
‘I am desperately sad, but I will endeavor to not go mad with grief’: Catastrophe’s Rob Delaney revealed his youngest son died aged two from a brain tumor (pictured together in May 2015)
Delaney explained in his Facebook post that while brain surgery had left his son with ‘significant physical disabilities’, the toddler found his own ways to overcome his challenges.
‘He quickly learned sign language and developed his own method of getting from A to B shuffling on his beautiful little bum,’ Delaney wrote at the time.
‘His drive to live and to love and to connect was profound.’
Delaney also paid tribute to the NHS staff who cared for his son, saying Henry’s doctors and nurses would be ‘my heroes until the day I die’.
He also praised the support the family had received from the charities Rainbow Trust, and Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice.
Fame: Delaney stars as Rob in the comedy Catastrophe, alongside Sharon Horgan (pictured), the two write and starred in the show together, basing it on their own lives
Doting dad: Delaney shared a picture of him cradling his son to Instagram in June 2015 with the caption ‘#ChristianDadsWhoVape’
Devastating news: The actor announced the death of his youngest child in a heartfelt and moving tribute, in which he asked for donations to the charities which helped his family
Touching: He shared this snap to Instagram captioned: ‘I put big boy underpants on my baby’ (pictured in May 2015)
Massachusetts-born comedian Delaney first came to prominence on Twitter, sharing his jokes on the platform.
After developing a huge following, he was signed up to shoot a pilot for Comedy Central.
The show was not picked up, however Delaney went on to co-write and co-star in Catastrophe with Sharon Horgan, taking inspiration for the show from their own lives.
The hit Channel 4 show has now run for three series.