Mark Wright shares emotional tribute to his grandfather Eddie as he vows to continue making his ‘biggest supporter proud’ following his death aged 92
Mark Wright has shared an emotional tribute to his beloved grandfather Eddie following his death at the age of 92.
Mark, 37, who is expecting his first child with wife Michelle Keegan, 37, took to Instagram to share a sweet throwback snap with his ‘biggest supporter’ Eddie and vowed to continue making his grandfather proud.
On Tuesday, a rep for Mark confirmed that Eddie “passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his loved ones.”
In a lengthy caption, Mark wrote: ‘During the 37 years I’ve known you, Grandpa, I’ve wondered and even asked myself several times as a little boy, “when do you think you’ll go to heaven?” I often asked this question because it scared me so much.
‘I’ve had messages from hundreds of people, some of whom I haven’t seen in over 20 years. EVERY message contains the same words in one way or another. GENTLEMAN – KIND – LEGEND!! All these things you were and more.
“You loved your family so much and your greatest success is how close we all are and how many people we are.”
Mark Wright has shared an emotional tribute to his beloved grandfather Eddie following his death at the age of 92
Mark, 37, who is expecting his first child with wife Michelle Keegan, 37, took to Instagram to share a sweet throwback snap with his ‘biggest supporter’ Eddie and vowed to continue making his grandfather proud
Mark continued, “You never got mad, you supported us no matter what, you never said no, even when I asked you to come to my bachelor party in Vegas at age 83 (you still hold the record of being the only person who has ever placed an order). cup of tea in a nightclub in Vegas at 2am) If you told us we were little bastards growing up, you’d apologize.
‘You waved us out the window every time we left your house and even 3 hours before you fell asleep forever, short of breath and not much energy left, you spoke the words ‘I’ll come down and see you son’ In short, you put EVERYONE first.
“You made everyone feel so special and left a lasting impression on everyone I know. My friends love you, my wife loves you and everyone you’ve met loves you. Grandpa, you can never be replaced because you were 1 in a million, but we can make sure your legacy lives on.
“I will continue to be the gentleman you taught me to be, take care of Nanny and continue to make you proud because one thing is for sure, you were my biggest supporter.”
He concluded the message with an emotional farewell: ‘Thank you grandpa for everything. I’m so grateful that I could love you, be your buddy, that you were my teacher, my boxing coach, my taxi driver, my idol, MY GRANDPA EDDIE, your legend I LOVE YOU FOREVER’
A spokesperson for the former TOWIE star confirmed the sad news to MailOnline on Tuesday, saying: ‘Mark’s grandfather passed away last night. He died peacefully at home, surrounded by his loved ones.”
Mark’s paternal grandfather, Eddie, was a former champion boxer and was hospitalized last year after a fall.
Mark’s dad Big’ Mark Wright shared a photo of his dad on Instagram at the time and wrote: “Happy Father’s Day to the best unfortunately currently in hospital after a fall a few days ago but dad I’m on the way see you soon stay strong xxx” .
Mark’s paternal grandfather, Eddie, was a former champion boxer and died on Monday evening (pictured together in 2019)
In a lengthy caption, Mark wrote: ‘During the 37 years I’ve known you, Grandpa, I’ve wondered and even asked myself several times as a little boy, “when do you think you’ll go to heaven?” I often asked this question because it scared me so much.’
Eddie has been part of the Wright family spotlight over the years, most notably alongside his grandson Mark for the BBC series Who Do You Think You Are? in 2019.
Mark revealed that his grandfather was his motivation for going on the show.
‘I’ve always wanted to know our family history, because my grandfather always guessed where we came from. But no one ever knew,” he said.
“He was told by my family that we were Italian and it’s great to be able to give this back to him. He has done so much for us, he is our king.
“It’s hard to pay him back, but this was the moment before it’s too late.”
On the programme, Mark described Eddie as ‘a tough ex-British champion boxer, but on the other hand he’s just a lovely gentleman’.
Mark learned a lot about his father’s side of the family over the course of the program and told viewers about growing up in London’s East End.
“My great-great-grandfather was a bit of an East End boy. He was a bit of a thief, but everything he did was to support his family.”
‘He had eight children who lived in a small house in East Ham. Ultimately, I saw the good in him. He lied about his age to get into the army and he was a great soldier.”
Mark also expressed his love for Eddie during lockdown and fought back tears on his Heart Radio show as he read out messages from listeners missing their relatives.
Mark Jr. pictured with his grandad Eddie and his dad Mark Snr in Who Do You Think You Are
Mark’s sad news comes ten days after he revealed he is expecting his first child with wife Michelle
“That grandpa message right there got me: I miss my grandpa very much, Grandpa Eddie, I love you so much and I can’t wait to see you again soon,” he said.
Eddie’s death comes ten days after he revealed he is expecting his first child with his wife Michelle.
TV and radio star Mark and actress Michelle shared their happy news that they are expecting their first child on December 29 in a sweet Instagram post.
Netflix star Michelle cradled her blossoming bump and wrote: ‘2025 is going to be a special year for us…’
The couple received hundreds of well wishes from friends and family on their Instagram post, including from Rochelle Humes, Kelly Brook, Vicky Pattison and best friend Arg.