Geordie Shore star Nathan Henry fights back tears as he opens up about dad Glen's terminal cancer diagnosis ahead of emotional documentary

Daily Mail​

11 hours ago

Geordie Shore star Nathan Henry fought back tears as he opened up about his dad's terminal cancer diagnosis.
The reality star, 34, has teamed up with his father Glen for an emotional documentary detailing his diagnosis and their father-son relationship.
Geordie Stories: Nathan & Dad follows Nathan as he embarks on a life-changing journey with his father Glen, where they go to Jamaica, Glen's birthplace, and reconnect with family roots.
The four-part series offers a rare and emotional look at black father-son relationships through a lens of vulnerability, heritage and identity and will see the pair open up about masculinity, illness and LGBTQ + acceptance in Caribbean culture.
Speaking to The Sun about the, Nathan admitted that he almost felt compelled to stop filming after seeing his father cry for the first time.
'When my dad cried, that's when I was like, he's not done TV before and the first TV show he's gonna do he's crying and I've never seen him cry, I'm like am I doing the right thing here?' he said.
'Afterwards I asked him if he wanted to stop and he was like, no, I want to do this to help people, he is as much in this as I am and he wants to help people.
'So I was like, I have no right now to stop this, he's got cancer, he wants to share his story. There's no going back.'
Speaking in an MTV clip about the show, Nathan said: 'I've learnt about where I came from. I've learnt a lot about my family, I've learnt a lot about, well you.
'Because it's weird because my dad came from Jamaica to England when he was 13. I don't imagine anything of your life, which is really weird I don't know if anyone else does this.
'Yours and my mam's life prior to yous getting married, in fact prior to me being born, I don't know anything about.
'Because obviously 1. I wasn't here, but 2. it's never been something that we've really talked about so it's been quite nice to dive into the past and figure out where we're from and see exactly where you lived as well, which was nice.
The biggest thing I learn t about my dad was that underneath this hard man exterior, you are a big softie aren't you. He's so loving, he's so caring, he's so kind.
'And I've also learned as well, don't take this the wrong way, I've learned patience, I've learned to be a lot more patient.'
His dad replied: 'Nathan, like when he was going up and now, he's completely different really.'
'Is that a good thing?' Nathan asks, to which his dad replies: 'It's a good thing because when he was small he was a little devil.'
Speaking about his diagnosis, Glen said: 'The reason why it is important to do this series is because once you've got a diagnosis from the hospital, it took them four months before you start treatment and I think that's wrong.
'They're supposed to be looking at your scan and whatever, but why does it take so long to come to some conclusion on what treatment they give you.'
Nathan added: 'I think what my dad is trying to say is that it's important that we've done this documentary so that we show the realistic side of living with cancer.
'Because you think people sugar coat stuff, and also there's no rule book or hand book on how to deal with this.
Speaking about his diagnosis, Glen said: 'The reason why it is important to do this series is because once you've got a diagnosis from the hospital, it took them four months before you start treatment and I think that's wrong'
'So the main reason we've done this is to show people this is our story and this is how we've processed this and hopefully that helps someone else.
Glen later gave advice to others living with cancer as he said: 'When you get diagnosed, have a word with your consultant and make sure they don't take that long to give you a diagnosis about what's literally wrong with you and start your treatment.
'Because four months is a bloody long time. A lot of things can happen in that four months.'