The ITV News journalist has opened up about the ‘agonising’ trip she made following the death of her husband, who passed away in 2022
ITV News Arts Editor Nina Nannar has shared her heartache following the death of her husband. Her partner of 23 years passed away due to complications from kidney disease in 2022, leaving behind their 19-year-old daughter Mimi.
In a recent heartfelt interview, Nina spoke about her “agonising” journey to New Zealand to scatter the ashes of her late husband, Steve Ronson.
The 57-year-old told Norfolk magazine that she had been planning and “dreading” this trip for over a year as it was a “heartbreaking mission”.
She intended to return Steve’s ashes to his homeland of New Zealand but confessed she wasn’t emotionally prepared.
The broadcaster admitted to sleepless nights worrying about whether she could manage her grief and not “be embarrassing” in front of his friends.
Nina confided in the publication: “Even though Steve has been gone three years, the sorrow I feel over his loss still manages to cripple me in unexpected moments, of leaving me still in despair and disbelief that he is no longer here.”
She expressed gratitude towards her friends for supporting her “through my irrational moments” and “times of agony”, reports the Express.
Nina added: “My grief is raw, but this trip Mimi and I made did help us in a huge way.” During their visit to New Zealand, Nina and Mimi joined Steve’s friends at his favourite surf beach where they sang their “family anthem”, Return Of The Grievous Angel.
They also congregated at a beach on the Coramandel Peninsula, where Nina captured a video and sent it to his sister, Chris.
She asked Nina if she had spotted an orb of green light traversing the video, which Nina hoped was a sign from Steve.
Kidney Research UK reported that Steve was born with reflux, a condition affecting a valve in the ureter, causing urine to flow in the wrong direction, from the bladder back into the kidney.
He endured three and a half years on dialysis before receiving a kidney transplant that lasted for 30 years. In 2021, he underwent surgery to remove a lump, but doctors found cancer cells.
A year later, the cancer cells had spread, leading to the removal of Steve’s ear the day after his 60th birthday. Tragically, he passed away in 2022, surrounded by his loved ones.