Jonnie Irwin apologised to wife when he told her he had terminal cancer

The television host was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer after first experiencing symptoms in 2020 - which has since spread to his brain.

Speaking on the OneChat podcast, he said telling his wife was one of the "hardest things" he had to do.

"I can remember it like it was yesterday. And I've got no memory since my whole brain therapy. But that bloody memory stays in my head," he said.

"And it is brutal. All I can remember is hugging her and just saying, 'Sorry'."

The presenter only went public with his illness in November 2022 because he “needed money” and therefore had to keep working while undergoing treatment.

Irwin had taken out life insurance which means his family will be taken care of after he passes away but said that he made a big mistake in taking the policy out.

"I didn't take critical illness insurance out and therefore I had to keep working, without work, I've got no means of paying the bills," Irwin explained.

"And if I had taken the critical illness insurance out, that could've covered my outgoings and I probably could've told the world [about his condition] a lot sooner."

He continued: "I could’ve had two years of living a more open lifestyle. And I want people to learn from that mistake. I think at the time I just thought I can better spend that money elsewhere.

"Where I don’t know. I’ve not frittered it away. Maybe because I know what benefits it would have had, it just seems ridiculous that I didn’t."

Irwin is yet to tell his three young sons about his condition.

"I keep being asked, 'Are you going to tell them?'," he said, before adding: "But tell them what?"

"It would be horrible news that they'd have to get their heads around," he told Hello Magazine.

"It would confuse the hell out of Rex – he's got a shocking enough day coming. Let's bury our heads in the sand for as long as possible."