Tom Parker: The Wanted star Max George says he ‘still texts’ late best friend and bandmate

‘I just find a bit of comfort in that,’ said singer on ‘This Morning’

The Wanted star Max George has revealed that he still sends text messages to his late bandmate and close friend Tom Parker.

The singers met during the audition process for the pop group and remained close until Parker’s death to brain cancer in March.

On an appearance on This Morning on Tuesday (31 May), George opened up about his grief over his friend’s death and admitted that he finds comfort in sending him WhatsApp messages.

“I’m still trying to process it; I still text him actually,” he told presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary.

“If I get pictures or stuff that fans have made with him in it or they send a nice message to do with Tom, I’ll WhatsApp it to him. I just find a bit of comfort in that.

“The worst bit is when I’m not doing it and I do it accidentally. Sometimes I go to do it and I’m like, ‘Oh no’.”

Parker, who was 33, wrote a memoir during the last year of his life, titled Hope, in which he shared stories about his upbringing and career.

Max George and Tom Parker (Instagram)

He also spent a significant amount of time in his final months working to raise awareness of glioblastoma with wife Kelsey Parker.

Talking about the book, George added that Parker found the process of sharing his story “therapeutic” but tiring at times.

“There were days where the days were quite long, especially when he was going through the chemo phase, because I know that really knocked him, but even still, he got through it,” he said.

“It was probably therapeutic for him on those days where he could just sit back and talk.”

The “All Time Low” singer continued: “To be honest, I don’t know how he did that, because he was going through hell, but he was still out there talking to people that had glioblastoma… and how they could put a positive spin on it and that they still have life to live.”

This Morning airs weekdays from 10am on ITV and ITV Hub.