This Morning's Gyles Brandreth fights tears again live on air over family loss

This Morning's Gyles Brandreth has been left fighting tears on the ITV show today after opening up about the "heartbreaking" death of his cat Nala. The 77-year-old appeared on This Morning today to discuss the biggest news stories - but started the segment by sharing the sad news of his cat Nala's death.

Speaking to hosts Sian Welby and Rylan Clark, he said: "I've shared my love for our cat Nala with viewers over the years. She was the neighbour's cat who came over a few years ago, danced over the garden wall and adopted my wife.

"The neighbour said, 'She clearly loves living with you and your wife more than living with us,' so she stayed. Sadly, she died yesterday." It's been an emotional few weeks for Gyles, as it comes after he broke down in tears over his late father.

READ MORE: Rylan Clark returns to This Morning but viewers left distracted by his new look

READ MORE: This Morning star 'I'm exhausted' after interview branded 'car crash' by viewers

The This Morning star burst into tears last week as the programme marked VJ Day and showed a photo of his father on the screen. Gyles broke down, saying: "There he is, bless him. Oh that's rather touching."

Continuing to speak about Nala on This Morning, Gyles said: "She was nearly 20 years of age, she was a Maine Coon, which is a very long life for Maine Coon."

He added: "She had a kidney failure and she had a tumour and she was beginning not being able to walk. It was time to say goodbye. It was heartbreaking because we loved her so much. She only brought happiness into our lives."

Visibly emotional, Gyles was seen blinking back tears as he asked whether it was too soon to adopt a new cat after Nala's vet revealed that there's a stray kitten that needs taking in.

"It feel meant to be," Sian said, while Rylan added: "You do whatever yous are comfortable with. We know how much you loved Nala, the amount of times we've spoken about Nala on the show.

"We're just so sorry for the both of you, we really, really are."

Gyles went on to added that it was a "struggle" for his wife as Nala used to sleep on her stomach. "Last night, I had to spend the whole night on her tummy so that she could go to sleep. I tried to be a bit like Nala," he said.

Gyles took to Instagram to share the news as well, writing: "Lovely Nala in her prime. She was the neighbour’s cat who climbed over the garden wall & found Michele & wouldn’t leave her.

"The neighbours agreed to let us keep her. We’re so glad they did. She was so special. Beautiful brilliant & just the best feline friend you could ever have."

* Join The Mirror’s WhatsApp Communityor follow us on Google News, Flipboard, Apple News, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Threads- or visit The Mirror homepage.