Rachael Bland: Late BBC presenter's son still refers to mother ‘in present tense’, says husband

‘He doesn’t understand anything about what’s happened,’ Steve Bland said

Steve Bland, the husband of late BBC broadcaster Rachael Bland, has spoken about how their son has reacted following his mother's death.

In September 2018, Rachael died from breast cancer after being informed earlier that year that the cancer had become incurable.

Before her death, she wrote a memoir for her son Freddie, so that he could learn about her life as he grew up.

Rachael's husband, BBC 5 Live producer Steve, has revealed that the three-year-old hasn't fully grasped that his mother has died, as he still refers to her as if she's still alive.

"He doesn't understand anything about what's happened," Steve said on ITV's Lorraine during an interview on Tuesday 26 February.

"He still talks about Rachael in the present tense."

Steve continued, explaining that Freddie is still a "happy little boy".

"That's what I've been told, that his grief will come and go," he explained.

"Probably when he's four, five, six we'll start to see more of how it's affecting him."

During the interview, Steve also spoke about the pride he feels in his wife's work to raise awareness of and encourage open conversations about cancer.

Rachael was one of the co-founders of a podcast called You, Me and the Big C, which she ran alongside co-hosts Deborah James and Lauren Mahon.

"What she achieved with the girls was phenomenal," Steve told Lorraine Kelly, in reference to the podcast.

"You know, totally changing the conversation around death, around dying, around cancer, making us able to have that conversation is something that I'll be really, really proud of. And I am really proud of."

According to UK-based bereavement care charity Cruse Bereavement Care, when taking care of a child or young person who's grieving, it's important to be open about your own emotions.

"Don’t try to put on a brave face if this is not how you feel because your child or young person may try and emulate this," the charity states.

"Neither of you will be able to progress if you are not being honest with each other about your emotions and how you are coping and this can be problematic later on."