Kelsey Parker has revealed her boyfriend has given her “a new lease of life” following the death of her husband Tom.
The 33-year-old’s husband Tom, who was a member of the band The Wanted, sadly passed away last March aged 33 – after being diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.
The couple had been married since 2018, and shared two young children – Aurelia, 3, and Bodhi, 2.
Kelsey met her new boyfriend Sean Boggans while on holidays with her friends in Rhodes last September, eight months after Tom’s death.
The couple briefly split in March, before rekindling their romance at a friend’s wedding in London.
In a new interview with The UK Mirror, the mum-of-two opened up about their relationship for the first time, admitting she hadn’t anticipated finding love again.
She said: “Sean will never replace Tom because Tom is irreplaceable to me but it’s having that person to talk to and share your day with.”
“I wasn’t looking for anything when we met and it came as a shock to me but we just genuinely got on and the relationship progressed.”
Gushing over her 40-year-old beau, Kelsey continued: “He’s such a good guy and it’s quite hard for him to walk into this situation, not a lot of men could do that and feel comfortable with it.”
“He comes to my house and it’s full of Tom, he’s so present and the kids talk about him all the time. But Sean doesn’t shy away from that.”
“After the kids met him, Aurelia said, ‘Daddy died of a brain tumour’ and he just replied, ‘I know, darling. We all miss your Daddy’. He’s another reassuring person for them, he’s a massive support.”
“We’re taking things slow and enjoying each other’s company. Is he a good match for me? Definitely, he’s so funny – he brings so much joy and laughter to me, and that’s what I need. When I’m having a bad day he’s there for me, to help me process that.”
The 33-year-old went on to say: “Can I see a future with Sean? Who knows what the future holds. I’m living in the now and the present, and it’s going really well.”
“Tom’s diagnosis to death might have been cruelly quick and everything over the last two years had been like a tornado but in more recent weeks and months, time had felt like it was standing still.”
“I felt so ready to escape it all and Sean gave me the chance to do that but I wasn’t ready to admit I was seeing someone. I was conscious of what other people would think, how others would be hurt.”
“Sean was fine not to put a label on what we had and that was important to me. I couldn’t rush into anything new. I didn’t need to look too far into the future. If Tom’s untimely and tragic death had taught me anything it was to live for every day.”
Kelsey also opens up about her romance with Sean in her upcoming autobiography, revealing they met in a bar.
She writes: “He was the first person not to treat me like a widow… It wasn’t anything romantic at first, it started off as a friendship. I picked up a nice vibe from him. He made me feel very normal and like Kelsey again.”
“A few weeks later, when we got back to England, we talked more and met up. I could feel things were becoming more romantic.”
