The self-styled spiritual medium’s wife Gwen Acorah said she was “devastated” in her statement, after his sudden death.
“Farewell my love!” she stated. “I will miss you forever!
“I’m devastated to announce that my beloved husband Derek has passed away after a very brief illness.”
Derek’s spouse of more than 20 years continued, giving further details as to what happened in the days before he died.
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Derek first found fame as a spiritual medium and fronted Predictions With Derek Acorah early in his TV career.
He went on to appear in series 20 of Celebrity Big Brother, where he came fourth behind the likes of Sarah Harding and Amelia Lily.
Born in Bootle, Merseyside, in 1950, he featured in regular segments on 1996 TV show The Psychic Zone before becoming a contributor on spin-off show Psychic Livetime.
His own show, Predictions With Derek Acorah, where he would conduct readings with members of the public in their own homes, became a frontrunner for the genre of paranormal investigation programmes.
In 2001, Derek joined Most Haunted when it launched and worked on the show for six series.
Some years later, he fronted Michael Jackson: The Live Seance, which saw the medium attempt to contact the singer’s spirit.
Tributes have flooded into Twitter, with one user writing: “Had the pleasure of meeting Derek Acorah at a charity do once. He was surprisingly down to earth, and VERY funny.”
“Rip @derek_acorah such a shock,” a second said.