This story contains content which some readers might find distressing
Comedian Russell Howard has revealed his baby son Felix died earlier this year, shortly after his wife Cerys had given birth.
In a statement, he said he and his wife had faced “unimaginable heartache” and described it as “the most devastating time of our lives”.
Howard praised the “extraordinary compassion, kindness and humanity” of the hospital staff who cared for them over the period that followed Felix’s death.
He also announced the launch of a new foundation in their late son’s name to help families going through similar ordeals, with a comedy fundraiser set to take place next year.
In a statement posted on his social media accounts on Friday, Howard recalled: “During our time in hospital, Felix was placed in a cool cot, which meant that my wife and I were able to spend precious hours with our beautiful boy.
“We could hold him, talk to him and tell him how much we loved him. Those hours are among the most precious memories we have of Felix.”
Howard and his wife had not publicly announced at the time that they were expecting their second child.
He explained he and his wife had been assigned a bereavement midwife named Lauren, who had experienced a similar tragedy and retrained in order to help other families.
“Her care meant more to us than we could ever put into words,” Howard said.
“We were overwhelmed by the care we received, and we made a promise to each other: that we would try to help other families who find themselves facing the same devastating circumstances.”
As a result, Howard said he and Cerys were launching The Felix Foundation, which will aim to help families affected by miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth, neonatal death or related bereavement.
A fundraising event, titled the Stand-Up Gala, will take place at London’s O2 Arena in February to raise money for the charity,
Michael McIntyre, Jimmy Carr, Aisling Bea, John Bishop and Mo Gilligan are among the comics who will perform at the event.
Howard said he would “never forget the generosity” of his fellow comics, who were giving their time to the show “completely free of charge”.