Terminally ill South Shore woman dies after dream wedding

A woman who married her loving husband for one final month together after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis has died.
Christine Hirst, 54, married her long-term partner Steve at a private ceremony at their South Shore homeChristine Hirst, 54, married her long-term partner Steve at a private ceremony at their South Shore home
Christine Hirst, 54, married her long-term partner Steve at a private ceremony at their South Shore home

Christine Hirst, 54, married her long-term partner Steve at a private ceremony at their South Shore home last month, just days after discovering her cancer had spread and that she did not have long to live.

She died on Tuesday at Blackpool Victoria Hospital surrounded by her two daughters Gina 33, and Jenny Jackson, 31.

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Steve, 54, said: “She was the best thing that ever happened to me. I loved being with her.

“I have lost my rock.“I just hope she is out of her pain now.”The grandma-of-three was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma – a type of skin cancer – in October 2016.In a previous interview with The Gazette she said she hoped to survive until December, when her fourth grandchild is due to be born.But just one week after her wedding she suffered several seizures and ended up in hospital.Steve said: “She didn’t stop fighting until the very end.“About two or three days before she died she looked like she was getting better, but then she took a turn for the worse.“I got a call at 6.20pm from her daughter saying come right away, but about 10 minutes later I got a call saying that she had died. It was very sudden. I do regret it. I couldn’t say my last goodbyes.”Steve and Christine married in May in a romantic ceremony organised by family friends Karen Santi, 35, Toni Travis, 34, and Jeanette Hyde, 57.The couple were taken by horse-drawn carriage to Ashton Gardens in St Annes to pose for a wedding photoshoot before being treated to a celebratory meal at the Chadwick Hotel.Speaking on the big day, Christine said: “I’ve never felt this happy in my life.”Steve said: “Christine was a very loveable person. She was very, very caring. Everybody loved her.”Her daughter Jenny said: “She was a people person. “We had that infectious laugh that made everybody else laugh.“She was the most kind, genuine person you could meet. “Most of all she was my mum, and she was a great mum to both me and Gina.“Mum loved her family and friends so much, and we all loved her.”Christine’s funeral will take place on a date yet to be arranged.

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