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JONNIE'S LEGACY
Place in the Sun star Jonnie Irwin left his wife nearly £1million in his will after cancer battle
The TV host wanted to carry on working after his diagnosis but was 'snubbed' by bosses
A PLACE in the Sun star Jonnie Irwin left nearly £1million in his will, probate documents reveal.
The beloved TV host, who died of lung cancer aged 50 in February, passed his entire £953,000 estate to his wife.
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His final will was signed in October 2022 and left everything to his wife of seven years Jessica Irwin.
Documents obtained by The Sun show the brave presenter had £956,967 in assets, reduced to £953,425 after deductions were taken.
The will was signed off by a probate court on Saturday in Newcastle, where he moved from his native Leicestershire.
The BBC and Channel 4 legend shot to fame for hosting A Place in the Sun from 2004 to 2021.
Read more about Jonnie Irwin
The long-running show helped house-hunters find a forever home in their dream holiday destinations abroad.
He was selected from hundreds of applicants to present the show along with Jasmine Harman and went on to appear in more than 200 episodes.
He also hosted the BBC daytime show Escape to the Country from 2010 to 2023.
The star’s life changed when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2020 – a week after his vision went blurry while filming in Italy.
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The cancer later spread to his brain and in 2022 Jonnie revealed he had just six months to live.
Jonnie continued to work after his diagnosis, earning a living from his TV appearances and private property consultations.
He also wrote for A Place In The Sun magazine and fronted the show’s live tours around the UK.
But he later claimed that after telling Channel 4 production bosses about the terminal disease he was cut from all roles on the show.
The star revealed to The Sun that Freeform Productions "paid me off for the rest of the season and didn't renew my contract".
He added the snub left him "really low", with Freeform later claiming it was because they could not get insurance for him to work.
The TV hero married Jess in 2016 after they met through mutual friends, and they stayed together until his death.
The couple found out about Jonnie's cancer in 2020 – just two months before Jess gave birth to twins Rafa and Cormac.
Their eldest child, Rex, was still just a toddler at the time.
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Despite the terminal diagnosis and being given just six months to live, Jonnie went on to live for nearly three years.
He credited the extra time to changing his diet and quitting junk food and snacks.
It comes days after a memorial cricket match raised thousands in honour of the late star.
His pals organised the game at Gumley Cricket Club, in Leicestershire, where the Place In The Sun frontman played for years.
Last Saturday’s match raised money for ALK Positive, a charity helping lung cancer patients.
In June, the star’s heartbroken widow revealed how she held Jonnie in his final moments as he listened to their kids playing.
Jess, 41, told of the "f****** awful process" of his final few days and how he told family members: "I'm just so sorry I'm leaving you all."
She said: “'You hear people say 'he passed away peacefully. It was lovely,' but it wasn't for Jonnie.
"It was a f****** awful process. I wish I hadn't seen it but I had to be with him."
"I still struggle with what he went through.
“I can't imagine what it is to know your time is up and you're hearing the noise of your three sons kicking a football in the drive; you can smell food cooking downstairs."
She described how Jonnie was "surrounded by love" at his home in Newcastle, rather than a hospice, and had around 30 visitors coming to say their goodbyes in his final days.
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Jess also spoke of the moment she told their three children of their dad's death.
She said they had kept the children "blissfully unaware" of their dad's battle, before telling them "angels had taken him to heaven".
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