Rebecca Cook
Published December 4, 2025 9:00pm
Updated December 4, 2025 9:29pm
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Previous Page Next PageDylan Llewellyn’s mother Jackie Llewellyn emotionally shared details of her first husband’s death during the latest episode of Celebrity Race Across The World.
The Derry Girls actor had previously opened up on the show about the loss of his brother James to suicide at the age of 20.
In Thursday night’s episode of the BBC One competition show, Jackie shared the heartbreak she experienced just days before James was born, when her husband was hit by a car.
The emotional moment came after Dylan and Jackie had set off in the lead for this latter stage leg of the celebrity rally.
The mother-son duo were en route to Colombia for their fifth or sixth checkpoints on the show, with the final looming. They decided to stop for a dip in a Panama waterfall.
Swimming in the water, Jackie told the BBC cameras: ‘When I’m in nature, I feel like I’m close to heaven or something. I think through losses I have, I feel closer to them when I’m in those moments of serenity and beauty.’
Dylan opened up about the death of his brother James in a prior episode (Picture: BBC)
‘When I’m in nature, I feel like I’m close to heaven or something’ (Picture: BBC/Studio Lambert)
Jackie went on to share how she had lost her first husband, who she met when she was 22, while pregnant with her first son James, who subsequently took his own life.
Speaking to the BBC, she recalled the harrowing moment she was informed of her husband’s death: ‘I was due to have James on December 19 and on the 21st, there was a knock at the door and those two fluorescent jackets.
‘They said, “We just want to let you know that your husband has been knocked over by a car and killed instantly”.’
She continued: ‘I had James and I found it very difficult on my own. I eventually got my act together and got on in life and coped.’
Jackie met and married her second husband Barry, with whom she shares Dylan and her third son Cameron.
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Jackie said she felt she ‘had to be strong’ for her boys (Picture: BBC/Studio Lambert)
Laughing to the cameras, she added: ‘I had three little boys under three. It was absolute chaos.’
Jackie then became tearful as she continued: ‘Losing two people very close in my life definitely has changed me as a person.
‘When James had gone I’d internalised trying to be brave and put on a brave face for the boys. It took me a while to be strong again, but I’ve had to be strong as a mother to my boys.’
X users were quick to share their emotional reactions to the story, with X user @francescajayne_ writing: ‘I can’t deal with how much trauma and heartbreak Dylan’s Mum has been through 😢😢😢😢❤️❤️❤️❤️ #CelebrityRaceAcrossTheWorld #RaceAcrossTheWorld’
@wayno265 agreed: ‘Poor woman. How strong do you have to be to deal with that?’
@judehamilton74 chimed in, ‘Dylan’s Mum had been thru so much heartbreak. They are genuinely lovely people who deserve to do well.’
I love Dylan and his Mother so much. It has been so moving hearing their story. They are both such lovely gentle souls. It has been a privilege to watch them in #celebrityraceacrosstheworld
— Time for tea (@4pmtimefortea) December 4, 2025
Jackie is such a brave, beautiful & kind soul ❤️#celebrityraceacrosstheworld #raceacrosstheworld
— 💁🏾♀️ Pritha Bardhan 🤷🏾♀️ (@PrithaBardhan) December 4, 2025
Dylan bravely shared the story of his brother’s death in an earlier episode of the show, during an ancient ceremony in South America.
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‘My eldest brother James, he took his life when he was 20. I was 16. It just hit us all hard, so hard,’ he said.
‘Doing this race is like doing it for my brother and my mum. He would have loved to do something like this. I think she’d like to have that kind of journey with a son.’
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Celebrity Race Across the World continues on Thursday at 8pm on BBC One.
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