Gogglebox favourite June Bernicoff has opened up about how life has been since her beloved husband of 57 years, Leon, passed away in December of last year.
The Liverpool couple won the hearts of the nation during their stint on the Channel 4 programme, leading people up and down the country to be devastated at the news of his passing.
Now June has spoken publicly about how life has been since losing her husband.
Speaking to the Mirror, June admitted the first time she really cried over Leon's death was in February this year, when Gogglebox bosses dedicated an episode to him.
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She recalled mouthing the words "Leon, they've dedicated the show to you," while looking over at his empty armchair with teary eyes.
"I looked over to his chair and when I saw it, that was the first time I really, really cried after he died," June told the publication.
While June was still coming to terms with her husband's death, she admitted that seeing the episode dedicated to Leon provoked a release of emotion which was the start of the grieving process.
The 81-year-old revealed how after five years of entertaining the nation on Gogglebox, she struggled to come to terms with the fact that the chapter was closed.
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"Sat there, I just suddenly thought we used to switch off and say, they'd be back on whatever day for filming.
"And I remember switching the TV off, and I had some wine left in the glass and I remember holding it up and thinking, 'Those cameras will never be there again'.
"I remember taking the glass out and going in the dining room thinking, 'The sound desk won't be there and the monitors won't be there.
"The researcher won't be curled up in the armchair'. And I thought that had gone. It was a part of our lives. It was a chapter of our lives."
June also spoke about that particular evening in her book, where she admitted that shehad been in an 'emotional vacuum' until that moment.
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"It's hard to explain exactly why and maybe it only makes sense to people who have experienced that kind of loss.
"Leon had always said to me that if he passed away before me, I had to stay positive, keep going and do anything that I wanted to do. I remembered that, and that is what I have done.
"Maybe I am an odd person, though, because that night, while watching the first episode of that 11th series, I felt I was finally able to start dealing with the sense of loss that I had experienced."
It's fair to say that both Leon and June have been a big miss to the Channel 4 programme.
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June's book, Leon & June: Our Story. Life, Love and Laughter is out on 20th September.
Featured Image Credit: Channel 4Topics: Celebrity News, TV News, gogglebox