The Repair Shop guest fights back tears recounting death of 'soulmate' dad - and reveals his heart-wrenching last three words
A guest on The Repair Shop fought back tears recounting the death of his 'soulmate' dad - and revealed his heart-wrenching last three words.
The BBC show, presented by Will Kirk and Dominic Chinea, sees a team of skilled craftsmen repair broken items beloved by guests for their sentimental value.
Last night's episode saw Will head to Oldham, Greater Manchester, to collect a vintage fruit machine from guest John Geraghty.
He explained his father bought it as a birthday and housewarming gift for his mother nearly five decades ago.
But his father sadly died not long after in a car crash - having headed out on a mere ten-minute trip, saying the heartbreaking three words: 'I'll be back'.
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John recounted the awful day to Will, which started with his father receiving a phone call from a close friend, saying he had broken down: 'Me and my dad always wanted to help somebody out.
'We both jumped in the van, reversed off the drive and as we did, a friend of mine appeared.
'My dad said, "Why don't you jump out of the van? You stay here with Neil - I'll be ten minutes, I'll be back.'
Getting out of the van was a split decision that saved John's life: 'A car came out of a junction without stopping.
'By the time the fire brigade got there, unfortunately it was too late.'
Will was moved by the tragic story, saying: 'Must've been tough.'
John gave a touching reply: 'Yeah because my dad was my soulmate. You know, I'm an only child and me and my dad did everything together.
'I think about it every year and on that day, June 28, and on his birthday. We were so close and it still hurts now.'
The Repair Shop team had a mountain to climb when it came to fixing the item - it had a stuck mechanism and damaged paintwork, and John had never seen the lights work
Asked to describe his father's character, he said fondly: 'He was the life and soul of the party.'
The tragic story makes the fruit machine all the more special: 'It's the one big thing we've still got that I can walk past everyday and it reminds me of my dad and it reminds me of my mum.
'It'll be lovely to see it restored and working again.'
The Repair Shop team had a mountain to climb when it came to fixing the item - it had a stuck mechanism and damaged paintwork, and John had never seen the lights work.
But arcade expert Geoff Harvey rose to the challenge, fully restoring the fruit machine to its former glory over several days - to John's absolute delight.
The emotional episode came after fans of The Repair Shop were left 'in tears' at another instalment of the show earlier this year - as a family were finally 'brought peace' after their item was fixed.
It saw electrical expert Mark Stuckey get to work on restoring guests Zaff and Nasari's vintage projector, which belonged to their dad.
The siblings' father brought the projector with him to Rochdale after being forced to flee Uganda in 1972.
The emotional episode came after fans of The Repair Shop were left 'in tears' at another instalment of the show earlier this year (pictured) - as a family were finally 'brought peace' after their item was fixed
The brother-sister duo were hoping to restore the projector, almost 50 years after it was last used, as they said it contained precious memories from their life in the African country.
Zaff and Nasari became emotional as the newly-fixed projector was unveiled, both tearing up.
'Oh my God, wow,' said Zaff, as Nasari added: 'It looks brand-new.'
The pair then got to view memories of their parents they had never seen before, which saw expert Mark ask: 'Was it as you hoped?'
'And more,' Nasari said, getting choked up. 'It brought me peace, seeing my mum and dad and how we were and my grandfather, how much time we spent together. Yeah, happy memories.'
'I bet you can't wait to get back home and get the family together,' Mark said, to which Zaff added: 'Absolutely. A big get-together, I think and have a viewing, basically.'
Viewers of The Repair Shop were also left emotional at the segment, with one saying: 'Don't know why I'm tearing up.'
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