'Our honeymoon money paid for my husband's funeral'
Two young widows who lost their husbands to heart conditions have launched a podcast about their experiences.Laura Burr, 31, from Banbury, Oxfordshire, and Gabby Evans, 32, from Burnley, have previously campaigned to lower the age of NHS health checks.Mrs Burr, whose husband died six months after their wedding, said the weekly podcast would deal with "raw emotions and real lives".She told the first episode: "I literally had to spend the money me and Ed had earmarked for a honeymoon on his funeral."
Her husband fell ill on the day after their wedding in April 2024 and was diagnosed shortly afterwards with dilated cardiomyopathy, which inhibits blood circulation.He died in October at the age of 32 while waiting for a heart transplant.Ms Evans' partner Tom Brakewell, who was 34, died suddenly at home in January 2025 with an undiagnosed heart condition.The widows, who have never met in person, previously joined forces to launch an online petition to lower the age - currently 40 - at which the NHS starts to invite patients for full health screening.
Mrs Burr said: "I fully believe if health checks were mandatory and Edward had gone for a health MOT between 25 and 30 his heart issue would have been flagged and he would still be here."The pair released The Podcast That Shouldn't Exist on Wednesday.In the first episode, Mrs Burr told how she walked down the aisle at the wedding and the funeral to the same music, from her husband's favourite film series Lord Of The Rings.Ms Evans described her fantasy that her partner would leap up and "jump scare" her at the chapel of rest.
The pair said the podcast was "a space we never asked to create about a club no-one wants to join".In response to the widows' campaign, the Department of Health and Social Care said: "Our deepest sympathies are with the families of Edward and Tom."The NHS's life-saving health checks are targeted towards those at higher risk, preventing around 500 heart attacks and strokes every year and stopping people developing a range of diseases."To increase availability and uptake of the checks, we are developing a new online service that eligible people can use at home to understand their risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes."
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