Russell Howard has announced the death of his son Felix, who died shortly after his wife Cerys Morgan gave birth to him earlier this year.
The comedian, 46, shared the devastating news on his Instagram page on Friday morning and thanked the National Health Service (NHS) for their support.
Russell explained that he and his wife, an NHS doctor, are now launching the Felix Foundation in memory of their son, to help other families experiencing the same loss.
Breaking the news online, Russell said: ‘Earlier this year our family changed forever when our beautiful son, Felix, died shortly after birth.
The couple, who did not publicly announce they were expecting a second child, have been together for 22 years and started dating in 2004.
‘During the most devastating time of our lives, the hospital staff who cared for us showed extraordinary compassion, kindness and humanity. They helped us through unimaginable grief and gave us support when we needed it most.
Russell Howard has announced the death of his son, who died shortly after his wife Cerys gave birth to him earlier this year (pictured with wife Cerys in 2023)
‘We were assigned a bereavement midwife, Lauren, who had experienced a similar tragedy.
‘After losing her own baby, Lauren retrained as a midwife so she could help other families going through what she had gone through.
“Her care meant more to us than we can ever put into words. During our time in hospital, Felix was placed in a cool bed, which meant my wife and I were able to spend precious hours with our beautiful boy. We were able to hold him, talk to him and tell him how much we loved him.
‘Those hours are among the fondest memories we have of Felix.
‘We were overwhelmed by the care we received and we made a promise to each other: that we would try to help other families facing the same devastating circumstances.
‘And that is why we are setting up the Felix Foundation in memory of Felix. The foundation aims to alleviate the needs of parents, siblings and other close relatives affected by miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth, neonatal death or related grief by:
‘Support the additional training of midwives in specialist bereavement care, through annual grants to give them access to resources such as consultancy qualifications.
‘Funding resources to provide emotional support and practical assistance.
‘The provision or financing of dedicated rooms, facilities, equipment and resources in hospitals, maternity wards, neonatal units and other appropriate healthcare settings, to support the care, well-being and dignity of babies and their families.
“Providing information, guidance, signage and other resources to affected families.
‘Raising awareness of late miscarriage, preterm birth, stillbirth, newborn loss and associated grief, and the support needs of affected families.’
If you have been affected by this story, please call Child Bereavement UK on 0800 028 8840 Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, or email helpline@childbereavementuk.org
