Sharon and Shane Horgan devastated as dad John dies after cancer battle

John Horgan died on Thursday surrounded by loved ones.

John Horgan died on Thursday surrounded by loved ones.

The father-of-five, whose children include former Ireland rugby star Shane and actor and writer Sharon, originally hailed from New Zealand but relocated to Bellewstown, Co Meath, when Sharon was a child.

A notice on RIP.ie: “The death has occurred of John (Donald) Horgan of Strand Rd, Termonfeckin, Co Louth, formerly of Bellewstown, Co Meath, London and Christchurch, New Zealand.

“He was a hugely loved husband of Ursula, father to Maria, Sharon, Lorraine, Shane and Mark and grandfather to Sadhbhy, Amer, Marianne, Charlie, Sadie, Neala, Joni and Aoibh.

“The funeral to celebrate the life of a wonderful husband, father, grandfather and good friend will be held at The Church of The Immaculate Conception, Termonfeckin, on Tuesday, 2nd January, 2024 at 1pm.”

A source close to the family told The Sun how John had been ill for some time before his passing, explaining: “He had been ill for the past couple of years, he had cancer.

“All the family were with him when he died. He was a very proud dad, they are a very tight unit as families go.

“He loved that none of his children let their fame go to their heads and are all very level-headed.

“He was firm but fair and they all loved him. They are a very private family and not sure how they will cope with his passing.”

Sharon previously opened up about her father’s unusual career change when she was young, explaining that he ditched his publican lifestyle to become a turkey farmer.

Reminiscing on her childhood, she said: “I was born in London and when I was very small my family owned a pub in the East End — the deep East End where the Kray brothers worked.

“One day someone came to my father and asked him to give an alibi for something very serious. That’s when my parents decided to move my sister and me to Ireland.”

“I don’t know how you make that jump into turkey farming, but I guess he was trying to find something that would work for us as a family.”

She also joked how her work in entertainment didn’t impress her dad, while her brother Shane was the golden boy thanks to his 13-year professional rugby career.

“As for Shane, well our dad’s a New Zealander, so can you imagine how proud he is of a rugby player son?” she said.

“They’re proud of me, too, of course. But it’s only the telly, you know, it’s not like I’m doing something important, like saving the world! Or playing rugby!”