Waterloo Road and The Bill actress Holly Matthews pay tribute to ‘incredible husband’ and ‘best dad’ to their two girls after he dies aged 32 from brain tumour
Ross Blair, 32, died at Coventry's Myton Hospice on Saturday after a hard-fought battle
FORMER Doctors star Holly Matthews paid tribute to her "incredible husband" after he tragically died from a brain tumour aged just 32.
Ross Blair - son of ex-Aston Villa and Coventry City player Andy Blair - died on Saturday after a hard-fought battle, undergoing two operations, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Devastated Holly, who also appeared in The Bill and Waterloo Road, confirmed the dad of two died at Myton Hospice in Coventry.
She said: "Just as the final whistle was blowing for the end of Saturday football, my incredible husband took his last breath.
“He was surrounded by me, his mum (Dionne Blair), dad (Andy Blair) and sister (Ashley Blair), peacefully and with the support of the incredible Myton Hospice staff.
“The loss we are feeling is unfathomable right now and breaking the news to my daughters was extremely tough, but we are supporting each other and taking it one step at a time."
Holly and Ross had two daughters together and she vowed to "ride the waves" of grief with them.
She said: “He loved those girls so much and he was the best dad, he chose to be around them, he adored them.
“I have lost my best friend.
“I have talked to the girls about energy and how energy never dies, that the people we love live on in our hearts and our memories and they no longer walk beside us but they are within us, part of of us and as Ross had an opinion on everything, we have no doubt what he would say in every situation.
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“The coming months will be tough but we will ride the waves and do what we need to.”
Holly also revealed details of the open funeral that anyone who knew Ross is welcome to attend.
Ross’s funeral will be held at Nuneaton Crematorium, in Eastboro Way, Nuneaton at 3.45pm on Wednesday, August 9.
She asked for donations to Myton Hospice instead of flowers.
Holly added: “We want this to be a celebration of Ross’ life and the impact he had on those around him, the children will be in attendance and we want to show them just how loved their daddy was and make it as light as it can be.”
Holly wrote a candid post as she sits at Ross’s bedside in his final hours last week.
She said: “What a f***ed up reality to be waiting for one of the people you love most in the whole world to die and even hoping that it will come soon.
“That is a weird space to be in, but a space that I and his family are living in.
“Grieving before they have gone, waiting for the last breath, half knowing it’s best if it is, half relieved when it’s not.
“None of this feels real at all and I keep having moments of “what the f***?!”, “how did we even get here?!”
“And I have to drag my mind into the now and deal with it.”
Ross was diagnosed with a rare grade-4 primitive neuroectodermal tumour (PNET) in 2014.
At the time doctors gave him the devastating diagnosis that he had a 50/50 chance of surviving more than five years.
But Ross, a property developer, responded well to the treatment and the tumour remained stable for two years.
Things looked hopeful, and the couple - who have been together for nine years- were able to continue lives as normal- making happy memories with their daughters Brooke, now six, and Texas, four.
But in 2016 a scan revealed that the tumour had grown, and on August 4 Ross underwent a second operation at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, where 75 per cent of the tumour was removed.
It was followed by radiotherapy and a year of chemotherapy tablets.
In May the family travelled to the Caribbean for a holiday, where Ross was feeling good.
But just two days after they returned Ross suffered a seizure, and since then Holly said his health rapidly deteriorated.
He was taken to hospital, then after a brief spell at home, he has been transferred to the Coventry hospice where Holly remained at his bedside day and night.
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