‘I used not to be able to talk about it at all’ - Barry McGuigan says it is ‘important’ to talk about grief after daughter’s death

Former boxing champion Barry McGuigan has said he feels it is “important” to talk about his grief after opening up about the death of his daughter on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

During his time in the Australian jungle, Irish star McGuigan became emotional as he told his fellow campmates about how his daughter Danika “Nika” McGuigan died aged 33 five weeks after being diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2019.

The Dublin-based actress, who played Danielle in BBC Three comedy Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope, originally overcame leukaemia after two years of treatment when she was diagnosed at the age of 11.

Following his exit from the ITV reality show, McGuigan told Good Morning Britain (GMB) on Friday that his daughter’s death was “the single most devastating thing that’s ever happened to me”.

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A tearful McGuigan, 63, added: “Losing my daughter five years ago was dreadful, and I never recovered from it, me and my wife, but I’m getting better as time goes on.

“I used not to be able to talk about it at all, but I know it’s important that I do chat about it, and I know she’s there somewhere.

“And it’s just her life was so sad, and it all happened at a most important time in her life when things were looking great and she got cancer and she died.

“Sandy and I, my wife, have never really recovered from it. I don’t think we ever will, but time teaches us how to deal with it.”

Before her death, Danika had starred in the film Wildfire, which received critical acclaim after its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2020, but she died before seeing its opening.

Former boxer McGuigan said he found himself openly sharing his experiences of grief in the jungle as all the contestants could do between trials was talk, but he still finds it difficult to speak about his loss.

“I find I choke up every time I talk about it, and people say get over it, but when you love somebody as much as I loved her, it’s almost impossible,” he said.

“So I try my best, and I know in time it will get better, but her passing and how terribly sad it was and how terribly painful it was, it’s just hard to cope with.”

It was announced on Thursday’s episode that McGuigan and Love Island star Maura Higgins were the latest contestants to be voted off I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

During his time on the show, the former boxer became close to McFly star Danny Jones, who has described McGuigan as a “fatherly figure”.

Discussing his relationship with Jones, he said: “He’s just the same age as my son, him and I fitted together like a hand in glove.

“He’s a lovely kid. I have so much respect for him. He’s funny, he’s incredibly talented. He’s got the best falsetto singing voice I’ve ever heard.

“He’s such a generous, kind fella. I hope he wins the king of the jungle.”

McGuigan said it felt “great” to be out of the jungle but that his time on the show was “one of the greatest experiences” of his life.

I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! continues on ITV1 and ITVX.