Dermot O’Neill has been left heartbroken following the death of his wife – her funeral took place today
Mrs Brown’s Boys star Dermot O’Neill said a final farewell to his beloved wife today as she was laid to rest.
Dermot O’Neill has been left heartbroken following the death of his wife just months after she was diagnosed with cancer. The actor, who portrays Grandad in the Brendan O’Carroll sitcom, confirmed the passing of his beloved wife Patricia ‘Chickie’ Maguire, 60, on June 1.
There were emotional scenes at Dardistown Crematorium in Dublin at her funeral today as family, friends and colleagues gathered to pay tribute.
Dermot, 67, had revealed that his wife of 14 years died in the early hours at St Francis Hospice Blanchardstown in Dublin after medics discovered multiple tumours in her stomach and gave her only months to live. He said: “We are absolutely devastated. I am going to miss her so much.”
Dermot and Chickie tied the knot in 2012. The pair first crossed paths at a Brendan O’Carroll concert and they waited 20 years before exchanging vows. Dermot had previously revealed details about the unconventional proposal. He messaged Chickie: “Do you want to be Mrs O’Neill?” She responded affirmatively by text and they wed shortly afterwards.
The sad news came just months after his wife learnt of her illness. Chickie received her cancer diagnosis in January, following a hospital visit in Spain where she was due to have a hernia removed.
During that procedure, medics discovered the tumours and determined surgery wasn’t possible. Subsequently, Chickie underwent chemotherapy treatment at Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital.
Chickie had previously explained that while offered treatment at a Spanish hospital, she chose to “come back to Ireland” as she feared that remaining in Spain meant she would “never see my kids again”.
The mother-of-seven also described the difficulty of informing her children, particularly her sons Salvador and Evan, whom she told alongside Dermot. She recalled how her husband “put his hand on my knee” before they “all hugged and cried”. Heartbreakingly, her sole desire was to celebrate one more Christmas with her loved ones, as she had a three-year-old granddaughter, Ellie, and her “dream is to make it to Christmas Day and give her a kiss”.
Tears and tributes flowed at the funeral this morning(Image: Collins Photo Agency Dublin)
