Claire Reid
Gary Barlow has opened up about the death of his daughter Poppy in 2012, saying it's a ‘scar’ he is going to live with for the rest of his life.
Barlow, 51, recently launched his one-man show A Different Stage in London’s West End, where he’s spoken candidly about his life to a packed out audience.
During the show, the Take That star shared heart-wrenching details about the loss he and his wife Dawn suffered when their Poppy was stillborn in August 2012.
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He said: "It's August 2012, Dawn has gone for a last-minute check-up, only four days to go, we're all so excited.
"Name is on the nursery, Moses basket, cot, clothes all over the floor waiting for the main player to arrive.
"Dawn calls and something's wrong, now this is one of those phone calls where you live a lifetime in a second."
He spoke about his ‘coping mechanisms’ after hearing the tragic news, saying: "We all have coping mechanisms, back there was the bulimia and the hallelujahs in the toilet.
"I'm not saying just having a run is going to cure it, but those were my coping mechanisms, I dealt with this by turning into bloody Inspector Gadget.
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"OK everybody, 'what to do' lists, peak to the doctors, tick, clothes for the hospital, tick, somewhere for the kids to go, tick, the only problem is Inspector Gadget doesn't have a gizmo for this.
"It was like someone sitting in our house and saying, 'The journey you are about to take is going to end in a car crash', then sadly handing you the keys."
Gary admitted to dreading seeing his daughter after Dawn was induced, but said the moment Poppy was born ‘light filled the room’ – the devastated couple were then given an hour to spend with Poppy.
He continued: "Over that next hour we took turns nursing her, cuddling her, having pictures taken with her, hands, footprints, just anything to try and extend those short 60 minutes.
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"But the nurse came and told us our time was up, we kissed her goodbye and off she went.”
Gary added: "I found myself back in that familiar place, not knowing any of the words or where to stand, nor what to say.
"I needed to accept this wasn't a scar that was going to heal with time, this was a scar I was going to die with."