STEPHEN Mulhern broke down in tears as he opened up about his dad’s death on Accidental Tourist.
The ITV show saw the In For a Penny host face his fears on a trip planned by his pals, Ant and Dec.
The Geordie duo sent him to South Korea where he tackled some of his food phobias as well as his fear of the sea.
Early on in the hour-long programme, Stephen explained how he and his entire family like to be in their comfort zone.
Speaking to the camera, Stephen, 48, said: “As a family, we know what we like and that’s what we do, and we always have.
“I am scared, I find my phobias so frustrating, but it’s time to make change, and the change is now.”
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But he became emotional when he mentioned his late father Christopher, who passed away in November last year.
He said: “If I was to tell my dad this, my dad passed away at the start of the year…sorry.”
As he struggled with his emotions, he whispered: “He wouldn’t believe it.”
Dabbing at his eyes with a tissue, he added: “I hope…he’d be proud.”
Once he reached Korea, Stephen had a letter from his mum to open, and his emotions spilled out once again.
He read: “My darling Stevie, when you read this letter you will be in Korea.
“Since you were small you have always believed in magic and from the bottom of my heart I hope you see the magic in this trip.
“Give it your best shot as you always do. On that note my darling, me and daddy will be with you every step of the way.
“Get back quick, love you forever, mum and dad.”
Viewers were quick to comment on Stephen pushing himself while still grieving for his dad.
One wrote on X: “Oh my word! You are much braver than I
@StephenMulhern there is nothing so far that I have said I’d do…genuinely I’m so proud of you and your Dad would be too, you know that. Your mums letter had me welling up.”
Another added: “I wanna applaud @StephenMulhern for #AccidentalTourist. He’s overcoming a lot of fears and absolutely smashing it!!! His dad would absolutely be so proud of him!”
A third commented: “@StephenMulhern absolutely fantastic viewing. So lovely to see abit deeper into your personality,and everyone in this home loves you a little more.
“You smashed it in Korea! Hoping for another episode and seeing you pushing further out your comfort zone.”
Accidental Tourist is available on ITVX.
