Former Emmerdale star Adam Thomas has told the heartbreaking story of the moment he had to break the news that his father had passed away.
Adam was flooded with love after he opened up in a moving Instagram post about the emotional moment he shared with a stranger who knew his dad Dougie James.
The Manchester actor and restaurateur was caught by surprise by a friend of his dad who didn’t know that musician Dougie had died.
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He had to tell him that the 70s soul singer had passed after the stranger told him he needed to ‘bring him over’ for a visit.
“First time I had to tell someone today my dad had passed…” Adam penned on Instagram.
“He was talking about my dad and how he hadn’t seen him in a while and how my dad would always make him laugh!
“He told me I needed to bring him over as it’s been so long…
“It caught me by surprise, because he was talking about my dad in the present and just hearing that felt so good!! but I quickly realized he didn’t know, so had to break the news to him… the gentlemen broke down and sat beside us and started to cry and so did I!!”
The brothers and their dad in Mumbai
(Image: ITV)
Speaking about how much the encounter meant to him Adam said: “The gentleman was not a friend from school or a buddy he used to go the pub with, he was a waiter at the place my dad used to go too!
“This is the effect my father would have on people!!
“He would always have time for everyone no matter how big or small your job was, or how much money someone would have…he would always treat everyone the same!
“A trait he passed on to me and I will pass on to my children.”
Adam, 32, who played Adam Barton in Emmerdale, added: “Crying with a stranger at 10am on a Monday morning in front of my wife and kids as we sat down for breakfast, was not something I planned but I’m glad it did because as much as it hurts am slowly coming to terms to the fact that my father isn’t here anymore and I feel I need to accept that.”
Filming with Dougie in India
(Image: Ryan, Scott and Adam Thomas/ Instagram)
And in a message to Dougie he wrote: “I know you can’t read this dad and I don’t really know why am sharing this but take from it what you will … but just be nice to people I think is what am trying to say lol x”
Dougie, who toured with The Jackson Five, appeared on the ITV show Mancs in Mumbai alongside his sons Adam, Ryan and Scott. He died in November, aged 72.
The much-loved Manchester music promoter was the lead singer of the 1970s band Dougie James and the Soul Train.
Last month Thomas brothers paid a heart-warming tribute to their dad on their first Father’s Day since he had passed away.
The siblings belted out Drift Away (Give Me The Beat Boys) together in his memory and there was a surprise as they were joined by Adam’s six-year-old son Teddy.
“Happy Father’s Day Dad!! I know you were with us this day dad watching with a big smile on your face,” said Adam in tribute to Wythenshawe-raised Dougie, who opened for Michael Jackson with The Jackson 5 at the Manchester Apollo in 1979.
Adam, the co-owner of The Spinn restaurant in Gatley, then shared the words he wrote for his dad at his funeral with his 978,000 followers.
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“To see my dads face again … to see him walking down the street, with his hands clutched behind his back, and his head down low and sometimes a dog in tow.
“My dad was very much a closed book, he was a hard man to read, but every chapter of his life was a story to tell.
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“From his days with the Jackson 5 to when he invited me and the boys to see him and James brown live …”
Last year Adam, his twin Scott, who was a contestant on Love Island, and Ryan, who played Jason Grimshaw in Coronation Street, starred in a documentary series with their dad where they went on a journey to India to explore their heritage.
Tributes poured in when his death was announced on November 28.
Dougie also worked with other music greats: James Brown, Frank Sinatra, Edwin Starr, Bill Haley And The Comets, Stevie Wonder and Billy Fury.
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