Doris Day died aged 97 today after contracting pneumonia. As the world mourned the death of the Hollywood legend, This Morning host Eamonn Holmes, 59, was among those who took to social media to pay tribute. Opening up about a dream he never got to realise, he shared a poignant post with his 497,000 Instagram followers. “I’m often asked, ‘Who would you like to interview?’” he said, explaining his regret he never got to interview the star.
“SHE was it,” the presenter added, along with the hashtag: “#RIPDorisDay.”
Eamonn uploaded two pictures of the actress and singer, one showing her laughing on her 97th birthday and the other a throwback to her silver screen heyday.
The ITV favourite, who is married to This Morning co-star Ruth Langsfod, 59, also revealed on Twitter that Doris had been his “first crush”.
“When I met Ruth I thought I was getting Doris Day!” he tweeted, sharing pictures of his famous wife and the late icon side-by-side.
“Well that turned out to be a bit of a miscalculation,” he quipped. “Doris was my first crush.”
Doris’ organisation the Doris Day Animal Foundation announced her death earlier today.
In a statement, they said the actress had died at her home in Carmel Valley, California.
“Day had been in excellent physical health for her age, until recently contracting a serious case of pneumonia, resulting in her death,” the statement said.
“She was surrounded by a few close friends as she passed.
The Que Sera Sera singer celebrated her 97th birthday last month, telling The Hollywood Reporter she had spent the occasion with “dear old friends out of town”.
She said she and her companions enjoyed some “quiet dinners together”.
Doris began her career as a singer in the late 1930s and went on to become the golden girl of Hollywood.
Her big break came after she scored a hit with her first recording, Sentimental Journey, at the age of 15.
Her acting credits included Calamity Jane and Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man who Knew Too Much.
Accumulating numerous accolades throughout her career, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004 and later received the Lifetime Achievement award at the Grammys.
Tributes poured in from fans and stars alike, with William Shatner, Antonio Banderas, Piers Morgan and Kay Burley among those remembering the icon.