Gogglebox baby! Tom Malone Jr cuddles newborn - 'welcome to the family'
Gogglebox star Tom Malone Jr has welcomed a new addition to the TV family, welcoming his nephew Caelan into the world.
The former Channel 4 star, who rose to fame after appearing on Gogglebox with the rest of his family, took to social media to share his joy at becoming an uncle. Posing with his new baby nephew, Tom wrote: "Welcome to the family Caelan #UncleDuties," alongside a baby emoji.
Caelan is the newborn son of Tom Jr's brother Lee, who has never appeared with the rest of his family on Channel 4's Gogglebox. Lee and his wife Sarah welcomed their second child Caelan into the world on Tuesday 11th June.
Lee isn't the only rarely-seen member of the Malone family on Gogglebox, with his sister Vanessa also choosing to stay out of the limelight most of the time. Instead, Tom and Julie are usually joined on the show by their other son Shaun.
While Tom Jr used to be a regular fixture on the Channel 4 show, he announced in February 2021 that he was leaving Gogglebox after six years. Writing on Instagram at the time, Tom Jr said: "So after 6 and a half years it’s finally time to put down the remote, and to say goodbye to Gogglebox," followed by a TV emoji.
He added: "I’ve loved every minute and I’m eternally grateful to @channel4 and @studiolambert for allowing me to be a part of the show. But new opportunities are knocking on the door and it’s time to explore them.
“I look forward to enjoying the show as a viewer and not having to worry about having said something stupid," alongside a crying with laughter emoji.
Last year, Tom Jr opened up about his brother Shaun's terrifying health battle, after the Gogglebox star fell into a coma. "My younger brother got seriously ill, was in hospital, in a coma for a while," he said on the Power of the Ordinary podcast.
"When he was 15, he got sinusitis, just like a cold that got infected. He must have had a tear because it affected all his brain fluid."
Tom Jr added: "Didn’t realise that as I’ve gone to [dance] training, he’s started to have a seizure in the back of the car. He’s gone to the hospital, they’ve put him in a drug induced coma." He later said that Shaun - who had to learn to walk again after waking up from the coma - was the most "inspirational person" in his life.
