Richard Wilkins reveals friend John Farnham is in good spirits ahead of emergency cancer surgery

Today entertainment reporter Richard Wilkins has shared an update on John Farnham’s health battle following the beloved Australian singer’s shock cancer diagnosis. 

Wilkins, who is a long-time friend of the 73-year-old hitmaker, became visibly emotional as he revealed Farnham was preparing for surgery. 

‘This is an announcement that no-one wants to make and no-one certainly wants to hear’, Wilkins, 68, gravely told Today co-hosts Karl Stefanovic and Ally Langdon. 

‘He is getting prepped as we speak. He is apparently cracking jokes with the doctors, so it was very on brand for him,’ he later added with a chuckle. 

It’s the latest in a series of emotional blows for Wilkins, who is still grieving the loss of several close friends including Olivia Newton-John, New Zealand singer Margaret Urlich, The Seekers frontwoman Judith Durham and Indigenous Australian singer Archie Roach..  

When asked by Langdon how he is coping with the bad news, Wilkins candidly replied: ‘It has been a rough old time. Not a lot of sleep last night.’

Today entertainment reporter Richard Wilkins, 68, (pictured) became emotional as he revealed his friend John Farnham, 73, is in good spirits and ‘cracking jokes with the doctors’ ahead of his emergency cancer surgery on Tuesday morning 

‘He is getting prepped as we speak. He is apparently cracking jokes with the doctors, so it was very on brand for him,’ he told Today co-hosts Karl Stefanovic and Ally Langdon. Pictured: Farnham performing in Fremantle, January 2020

‘When these things happen everyone needs to talk and vent and shout to other people who have caught up on the early news,’ he added. 

News broke on Tuesday morning that Farnham had been diagnosed with cancer and was scheduled to undergo surgery hours later.

The legendary pop singer’s family issued a statement revealing the shock diagnosis on Tuesday morning, but it’s understood surgeons are confident the operation to remove a cancerous growth will be successful.

It’s the latest in a series of emotional blows for Wilkins, who is still grieving the loss of several close friends including iconic singer Olivia Newton-John (left) 

Wilkins also recently broke down on the Today show as he spoke about Newton-John’s death 

‘We have recently discovered that John has a cancerous growth. He has been admitted to hospital this morning for surgery and ongoing treatment,’ the statement said.

Farnham, best known for his iconic Aussie anthem You’re the Voice, said cancer was something that ‘so many people face every single day’.

‘The one thing I know for sure is that we have the very best healthcare professionals in Victoria, and we can be grateful for that. I know I am,’ he said. 

News broke on Tuesday morning that Farnham had been diagnosed with cancer and was scheduled to undergo surgery hours later. Pictured in Melbourne in June 2015 

Veteran entertainment reporter Peter Ford said Farnham’s family was ‘quietly confident things are going to be fine’.

‘They don’t want people panicking. His wife is there, his two sons are there with him. The doctors are confident that they’re able to get it,’ he said on Sunrise.

The revelation comes weeks after the Australian music industry was rocked by the death of Farnham’s long-time friend and collaborator, Olivia Newton-John, following her long battle with breast cancer.

 Surgeons are confident the operation to remove the cancerous growth will be successful.  (Pictured: Farnham with Olivia Newton-John in February 2020)

The Farnham family expressed their ‘love and sympathies’ to Newton-John’s family in a statement following her death on August 8.

‘Behind that iconic smile was a tenacious fighter. A beautiful voice and a loyal friend. She will be greatly missed,’ the statement read.

He was the last person to perform on stage with Newton-John, at the Fire Fight Australia bushfire relief concert held in February 2020.  He performed three songs and a duet with the Grease star.   

John, pictured with wife Jillian Billman in 1973, had recently given up his 56-year smoking habit and cut down on alcohol 

Farnham also lost his long-time friend and manager Glenn Wheatley, 74, in February, who died of complications from Covid-19. 

Farnham’s wife Jillian told Daily Mail Australia at the time that her husband was ‘too unwell’ to publicly discuss the loss of the legendary music producer. 

Wheatley masterminded the rise of Farnham in the early 1980s at a time when the musician was struggling to feed his family. 

Farnham is most well-known for his hit single You’re the Voice, which was released in September 1986

Farnham sang his way into Australian hearts as a fresh-faced teenager in the 1960s but had faded into near-obscurity before his most famous album Whispering Jack shot him back to the top some 20 years later.

The 1986 album featured one of the nation’s most popular pop music anthems, You’re the Voice, and propelled Farnham to iconic status.

Farnham followed up Whispering Jack with his chart-topping albums Age of Reason (1988) and Chain Reaction (1990). 

Farnham’s family revealed the news of the legendary singer’s cancer diagnosis this morning

His cancer diagnosis is not the first time Farnham has faced a major health battle.

In 2019, he was forced to cancel his Australian tour at the last minute when he was admitted to hospital with a severe kidney infection.

‘I didn’t realise until too late. I’d been feeling uncomfortable. My wife Jill had been telling me to go to the doctor,’ he explained at the time. 

‘I was very unwell there for a while,’ he said, adding that he was ‘good now’ and ‘it gave me a wake-up call to look after myself a bit more’. 

In 2019, he was forced to cancel his Australian tour at the last minute when he was admitted to hospital with a severe kidney infection. Pictured performing on Cockatoo Island in November 2019 

The kidney infection developed after he underwent a surgical procedure three months earlier which had also led to shows being cancelled.

Farnham said he completely overhauled his lifestyle after the health scare, including  by quitting smoking and cutting back on alcohol.

After battling the kidney infection, he held a charity concert to support Australia’s farming community during the devastating drought, which raised more than $4.4million.

‘We’re talking about generations of farmers losing their properties or animals because of drought and in some cases losing their lives or hurting themselves,’ he said at the time.

Farnham has been recognised with several major honours and awards, including 1987 Australian of the Year, 1996 Officer of the Order of Australia, and 19 ARIA Awards, including his 2003 induction into the Hall of Fame. 

Farnham was born in 1949 in Dagenham, England, and at age 10 emigrated to Australia with his family, who settled in Melbourne. 

Farnham was the last person to perform on stage with Olivia Newton-John, at the Fire Fight Australia bushfire relief concert held in February 2020

ncG1vNJzZmhqZGy7psPSmqmorZ6Zwamx1qippZxemLyue9OvqqGnp5e2u3vRopqhmaKZeri1y6Sgp6tdp7K3scClqmaeop6yr7CMo6ahpl2brrO6x5qkZqGjYravecaopp1lo6W2s7XTrGSaoJWWsW67xWacpp2inLKvr9hmmpqmk5q%2Fbr%2FUq56eqqlk