Former Hollyoaks star Ray Quinn reveals his heartbreak after his dad died last year

Ray Quinn has spoken candidly about his heartbreak after his father passed away in November, just six weeks after receiving a cancer diagnosis. 

The former Hollyoaks star, 32, spoke with OK! Magazine on Thursday about his father Ray Quinn Sr’s tragic death, which came suddenly despite being told he had six to eight months of treatment ahead of him.

Reflecting on what happened, Ray said: ‘My dad passed away in November which was really quite a sad, dark time.

‘It was a really difficult time for me and Emily knows that because he was [my] best friend, he really was. Basically he had cancer and it was a bit heavy and it was all over.

‘They told him six to eight months with the treatment and it was six to eight weeks basically and we lost him just before the 8th November, I think he died on the 7th. It was very, very sad times.’

Ray added that he was ‘still getting over’ and processing his dad’s passing, but his fiancée Emily Fletcher has been a great support to him.

X Factor star Ray went public with his relationship with Emily in 2017, following his split from ex wife Emma Stephens in 2015, with whom he shares his eight-year-old son Harry. 

He told Star magazine at the time that he met Emily, who also has a young son, Lucian, on a night out and sweetly insisted that meeting her was ‘fate’: 

‘She’s a school teacher and we made it official last June. It was fate,’ he gushed. ‘I believe whatever’s meant for you won’t pass you by. I can’t stand dating apps. A text message or a picture on Tinder is absolutely pointless.’ 

Ray recently took on a new role as a Hermes Delivery driver after growing ‘bored’ after the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to his work.

On Monday, he told how ‘proud’ he was of his temporary job in which he earned £11.40 per hour, stating in a new interview that it was a ‘humbling experience’.

The actor, who has starred in Hollyoaks and Brookside among other roles, also insisted that he was ‘never shy of a hard day’s work.’

In September last year, it was reported that Ray had been working as a delivery driver and was believed to have started the job at the start of lockdown, delivering across the North West.     

Discussing his role with Hermes, Ray told OK! magazine: ‘It was only ever temporary. I did it for about three months. I felt bored and needed to fill my time. It kept my mind occupied. I’m never shy of a hard day’s work.’

He went on: ‘I have massive respect for people who do it day in, day out. It was a humbling experience and I’m proud of it. There’s a sense of achievement. I’d done a full day’s work, earned a bit of pay and then got to go home to my family.’

Like many sectors, the entertainment industry has been hit hard by the pandemic, with many performers and crew left without work for almost a year.

Discussing the difficult period, The Dancing On Ice winner said that it was an ‘eye-opener’, adding that it was ‘hard’ not knowing that work was never guaranteed.

However, he did embrace the positives in that he got to spend more time with his family, adding that the period has taught him to ‘leave your ego at the door’.

As well as his career, the pandemic also affected Ray’s future plans with fiancée Emily as dreams of saving for their ‘forever home’ put on hold, with the duo forced to move in with Emily’s parents.