Ex Sky Sports presenter Simon Thomas thanks NHS after daughter born eight weeks premature

TV presenter Simon Thomas has thanked NHS staff who helped to deliver his premature daughter after his wife went into labour eight weeks early.

The former Sky Sports frontman said his wife Derrina "fell rapidly ill" and was taken to hospital, where she gave birth to their "hugely precious baby girl".

Posting on Instagram, he praised the team at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire, who "were simply incredible and held our hands physically and in spirit the whole way through a very fear filled and stressful day".

"Not everything in life goes quite according to plan," he wrote. "One moment we think we’ve got eight weeks until our little one arrives; the next, after Derrina fell rapidly ill, we’re suddenly welcoming into the world a very tiny, but hugely precious baby girl weighing just over three pounds."

The ex-Blue Peter presenter added: "I cannot express how proud and blessed I feel right now - I have a beautiful, brave wife in @derrina, a precious son and now a tiny, wonderful daughter and sister for our boy Ethan.

"We have a long road ahead of being in hospital for the next few weeks; but we have the best team around us.

"Thank you Stoke Mandeville, thank you #nhs for being there for us and thank you God for blessing us as a family so much."

Mr Thomas and his wife Derrina married in 2021 at Norwich Cathedral.

In 2017, his first wife Gemma died just three days after she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia.

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