Jo Whiley, 58, candidly reveals how she battled grief and 'bulletproofed her ... trends now
Jo Whiley candidly revealed how she stopped form 'losing herself in grief' after a string of tragic bereavements - including BBC colleagues Steve Wright and Simon Willis.
The Radio 2 DJ, 58, said how she had lost six friends and as a result 'bullet proofed her life' in order to stay healthy for her children.
Jo, who shares India, 31, Jude, 25, Cassius, 22, and Coco, 15, with husband Steve Morton told Woman & Home: 'Life can change so quickly. Often when you’re not expecting it'.
She went on to explain how her husband lost two of his closest friends around the same time saying: 'Our kids grew up together, and we used to go on holiday and spend weekends with them'.
'All of a sudden, you’re adrift, and you have to try and be pragmatic. Instead of losing yourself in grief, you have to go, "Right, what can we do to make this better?".
Jo Whiley, 58, candidly revealed how she stopped form 'losing herself in grief' after a string of tragic bereavements - including BBC colleagues Steve Wright and Simon Willis
The Radio 2 DJ said how she had lost six friends and as a result 'bullet proofed her life' in order to stay healthy for her children
The Radio 2 DJ said how she had lost six friends and as a result 'bullet proofed her life' in order to stay healthy for her children (Jo pictured with her family)
Jo said she decided to 'overhaul her lifestyle' after the loss of further friends to COVID, epilepsy and stomach cancer, as well as Radio 1 producer Simon dying from a brain tumour in 2021.
'They are things that can happen to anybody, at any point, so I decided I had to bulletproof my life. I don’t want to check out early and I need to do whatever I can to keep this body going for as long as possible.
'I want to be here for my children. Hence the swimming, diet, vitamins and routine health checks. I get a mole check every year because I’m quite moley, and I wasn’t as careful as I could have been with tanning and sunbathing in the past.
Elsewhere in the interview Jo discussed the realties of getting older and concluded age was no barrier.
Saying: 'If I ever worry about getting older, I think, "Thank God you’re alive" and I’m so grateful'.
'There’s a lot to get your head around because visually and physically, things change with age, so you have to address them'.
The veteran broadcaster previously revealed how she has cut out sugar, was drinking less and exercising more in order to stay fit since the tragic losses.
'All our big players we used to hang out with have died,' she told The Telegraph.
Speaking about grief she said: 'All of a sudden, you’re adrift, and you have to try and be pragmatic. Instead of losing yourself in grief, you have to go, "Right, what can we do to make this better?"
Another recent loss is her Radio 2 DJ colleague Steve Wright, who died in February aged 69
Jo said she decided to 'overhaul her lifestyle' after losing further friends to COVID, epilepsy and stomach cancer, as well as Radio 1 producer Simon dying from a brain tumour in 2021 (pictured together)
Jo said: 'They are things that can happen to anybody, at any point, so I decided I had to bulletproof my life. I don’t want to check out early and I need to do whatever I can to keep this body going for as long as possible'
'So we have to be the party
