Caroline Aherne’s brother reveals ‘last conversation’ with the star before she lost her battle with cancer
Patrick Aherne pays an emotional tribute to his sister
BRAVE Caroline Aherne’s brother has talked of his heartbreak in losing his sister to cancer.
Patrick Aherne, said he had seen the Gogglebox star just before she died, and had a “last conversation” with her.
It’s reported the comedian – who died last week aged 52 – remained upbeat despite knowing her illness was terminal.
Speaking to the The Mirror from his Cheshire home he said: “Caroline is everything to us.
“You can imagine how we are feeling.
“Yes I saw Caroline recently and had a last conversation with her.”
Patrick, who is 18 months older, suffered from retinoblastoma, a condition his sister also had.
Caroline had once spoken of how they bickered when they were kids, but then went on to become the “best of friends”.
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Shortly after she died he released a statement saying: "My heart is broken as I loved her so much.
“But she is now in a better place and most of all she has no pain.
"I have lost a beautiful sister and the world has lost an amazing talent.
“I know Caroline would want everybody to be happy and not sad and I think we should now remember the comedy legacy that she has left for us.
“RIP Caroline".
Meanwhile it’s been revealed that brave Caroline kept the smiles coming even in the final days of her lung cancer battle.
When Caroline discovered two months ago that doctors could not cure her, she contacted close pals to tell them.
But while many of them broke down, the Mrs Merton star remained stoic and tried to console them instead.
A pal who spoke with Caroline said: “She was amazingly resilient and didn’t even cry as she told us she only had a matter of weeks to live.
The Sun can also reveal rock star Peter Hook was “in bits” as he took to the stage just hours after his ex-wife Caroline Aherne’s tragic cancer death.
The former Joy Division and New Order bass player was “almost silent backstage but still did his stuff”, one fellow musician revealed.
Hooky, 60, was married to the comedy genius for three years and despite an acrimonious split was still “emotionally devastated” by the events of last Saturday which “pained him badly.”
Hooky still fulfilled his commitment to 8,000 fans and played bass guitar and sang on the New Order classic Blue Monday at the sell-out Hacienda Classics orchestra gig at the Castlefield Bowl in Manchester on Saturday night.
But one musician on the bill revealed: “Peter is usually buoyant and full of life, and had been really geared up for this concert.
“When the bombshell news came through about Caroline, who was such a massive part of Manchester and Peter’s life, we wondered how he would react and cope.
“But he went out there and played Blue Monday on the edge of the stage in front of a 40-strong orchestra. He showed great strength.
"He even sang the vocals, but left the stage afterwards and was very quiet.
"He fulfilled what he wanted to do, but it was like he was struggling. A few of us said how sorry we felt about the loss of Caroline."
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