Inside Jedward's Christmas Day plans with Gemma Collins as they issue tragic update

X Factor stars Jedward have shared the heartbreaking reason why Christmas is such a challenging time for them as they navigate grief

Former X Factor duo Jedward shared their plans to spend Christmas Day with Gemma Collins, following a heartbreaking update. 

In an interview with The Mirror at Tulleys Christmas Light Festival last Friday, the twins revealed why Christmas has been particularly difficult for them.

John and Edward Grimes explained that most of their family members have sadly passed away, leaving them to spend Christmas alone. However, their close friend Gemma Collins has been a huge support to them.

The pop stars told us: "Christmas is really sad, this year we’re going to be spending it with Gemma because most of our family have sadly passed. Gemma’s a real one, you know, having someone like Gemma in our lives has definitely been hugely uplifting. We spent Christmas with Gemma last year."

They added: "I feel like Christmas is sad because we don’t have our grandparents but we have all our memories so at Christmas time, those feelings come rushing in and you hold that during the holidays." 

Jedward then spoke about how tough the festive season is for them, saying: "It’s very hard. I feel like as much as people think we bring the energy, we do find ourselves in low moments." They continued: "It’s a hard time, our mum’s not around, our granny and grandad and people that meant a lot to us aren’t around, so that alone hits you hard during the holidays when everyone is complaining about their family members or whoever, at least they have them around."

The pair also highlighted how challenging Christmas can be for many people, especially with the colder and darker days affecting mental health. Offering advice to their fans, they said: "You’ve got to keep living until the sunlight gets back."

As for their Christmas Day plans with Gemma, Jedward shared: "We’re going to be spending it with Gemma, she’s already invited us. She got us Christmas decorations for our tree. During the festive season, she’ll literally be staying at ours. She got us customised stockings. It’s really sweet, it’s nice that Gemma’s able to rise to the occasion and be such a great friend."

Jedward have created their own Christmas song, LOVEmas, set to be released on December 6th. The twins revealed they’d love to perform it at anyone's wedding or engagement. When asked whose wedding they’d like to perform at, they jokingly mentioned Kerry Katona, saying: “Maybe Kerry Katona is the next one, maybe we’ll be there.”

Gemma and Jedward have been close friends for years, with the twins often traveling from Ireland to Essex to visit her. The trio have reportedly spent three Christmases together. Last Christmas, Gemma shared that the twins would be staying with her during the festive season and posted a video of them singing Feliz Navidad on Instagram, accompanied by a heartfelt caption. She wrote: "It’s OFFICIALLY CHRISTMAS when @jepicpics (the twins' Instagram page) come to stay for the whole time. The kindest people to me and real friends."

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