In the latest episode of On the Marie Curie Couch, Simon Rimmer sits down with bereavement expert Jason Davidson.
Simon is a celebrity chef, author and TV presenter. He co-hosts Channel 4's Sunday Brunch, alongside former On the Marie Curie Couch guest Tim Lovejoy. Simon has written five cookbooks to date: The Accidental Vegetarian, Rebel Cook and The Seasoned Vegetarian, plus Something for the Weekend and The Sunday Brunch Cookbook, both with Tim Lovejoy. In this episode, Simon talks to Jason about the grief he's experienced since the death of his dad, Peter.
Content note: discussion of death and grief with reference to themes/topics that might be triggering or upsetting.
“We shared the last day of Dad's life”
My dad just faded. He wasn't ill, per se. He'd had a couple of heart operations, he'd got less and less mobile. He just faded and faded. He fell, took a blow to the head and had a bleed on the brain. On 29 June, a day short of his 90th birthday, he died. All of us were there for 24 hours. We shared the last day of Dad's life. We told stories, and we laughed and we cried.
Dealing with sadmin before the funeral
Those first couple of days, it's a very strange thing, isn't it? There's so much admin to do when somebody dies that you're not even in denial – it doesn't seem real. It almost becomes – it does become – a legal process, a logistical process. It's about, 'Right, okay, we need to sort this, we need to sort that.' I remember that period from the initial admin to then waiting for the funeral being a really, really hard time when that sense of loss becomes so very, very apparent.
Listen now
Tap the link near the top of this page to listen to Jason's chat with Simon. Alternatively, listen to or download it via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you prefer, you can read a full transcript of the episode.
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If you need support with bereavement or grief, call the Marie Curie Support Line on 0800 090 2309 or visit mariecurie.org.uk/information
