ITV Loose Women star Ruth Langsford has opened up on her heartbreak over her sister Julia’s death, revealing how it’s inspired her to ‘live her life well’ every day.

During a recent episode of Loose Women, ITV panellist Janet Street-Porter opened up about her reflections on life after celebrating her 78th birthday. She admitted to feeling increasingly conscious of being the last surviving member of her immediate family, following the deaths of her parents and younger sister.

Janet shared a nostalgic photo online from her birthday with her sister, explaining to her fellow Loose Women that it was a significant moment for her to reminisce and reflect.

Ruth Langsford chimed in on the topic of ageing and remembering deceased family members, saying: “I’m 65 this year, it’s very easy to slip into that, ‘Oh god, I can’t believe I’m 65, I’m so old’. I don’t, I now have to look forward and think, ‘How amazing I’m 65, I’m here, I’m alive, I’m standing up’.”

Ruth Langsford issues heartwarming tribute to late sister as she admits ‘it drives me’
The ITV star also spoke about the heartbreaking loss of her sister Julia, revealing that she always remembers her on her birthday. She said: “I remember when she died thinking, ‘I must live my life well because she didn’t get the chance’. She wouldn’t want me being sad forever without her. So, that kind of drives me on.

Ruth’s younger sister tragically took her own life in 2019 at the age of 62. Julia had been struggling with depression for many years prior to her untimely death, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Following the tragedy, Ruth took a hiatus from her presenting duties to grieve for her sister. Ruth Langsford previously opened up about her way of coping with sorrow, revealing on the show that she would often cry in the shower to release her emotions.

Ruth with her late sister Julia ( 
Image:
RUTH LANGSFORD/ INSTAGRAM)
She confessed in 2022 to her co-stars: “When my sister died, I had good cries in the shower because it’s very private. “I think if you’re in the bathroom, whether you like a bath or a shower, it’s that shut the door and nobody really disturbs you. I could have a good old, proper old, loud snotty cry and get that out of my system.”

In another heartfelt moment on the show, Coleen Nolan reflected on her late sister Bernie and the impact that her memory has on her perspective on life’s struggles.

Coleen spoke about her late sister Bernie on the show ( 
Image:
ITV)

She shared with fellow panellists that she tells herself: “Whenever I get down about things or really worried about things, I just bring myself back into the moment and I go, ‘Yeah, but Bernie would love to be here with those problems and she’s not.’

“Then with birthdays, obviously as you get older, I’ve got my 60th coming up in March, people go, ‘Oh, you’re 60, you’re getting on’ and all that.

“To me, it’s cheesy I know but honestly, because of things that have happened in the past and losing loved ones when it was way too soon to loose them, it makes me celebrate when I wake up in the morning, let alone if it’s my 60th. I literally wake up and go, ‘I’m still here, I’m alive.'”