‘I miss you every day’: Kym Marsh shares loving message to her lost child

Coronation Street and Waterloo Road star Kym Marsh has shared a loving tribute to late son Archie on his 16th birthday.

The Michelle Connor and Nicky Walters actress took to Instagram to write the heartfelt post, revealing how the loss still affects her.

Kym lost son Archie in 2009, after he was born prematurely at just 21 weeks.

’16 years without you. It feels like yesterday we said goodbye,’ she began.

‘Every year I try to write something new. But the fact is that there is nothing new to say. I still miss you every day, that will never change. I still hurt and feel pain the same as always.

‘I still would give anything to have you here with us to celebrate your birthday. To see you smile when you opened your gifts, to hear you laugh at the silly things people would write in your cards, to see Polly annoying her big brother and the two of you doing the silly bickering that siblings do, to give me a hug and tell me you love me, but that I needed to let go now cos I’m embarrassing you haha.’

Kym, who sadly lost her dad David to prostate cancer in 2024, went on to explain how she took comfort in the fact that he was with Archie.

‘We all miss you so much, there will always be my one missing, but I take great comfort in knowing that grandad is up there with you now. He’s hugging you for me, for us. He’s making you laugh with his silly jokes and he’s showing you how much you’re loved every day.

‘I wonder what you would look like now? If you’re anything like your siblings then you’re a beauty. They miss you Arch. They really do. We all do. We will honour you today kiddo and celebrate the wonderful young man that you would most certainly be. Happy birthday son. Love you always and forever,’ she finished, signing of with ‘Mum’ and a love heart emoji.

The post was immediately flooded with support from fans, colleagues and family members, with singer daughter Emilie Cunliffe writing, ‘I love you mum, and so does Arch.’

Youngest daughter Polly, who Kym shares with Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas, also wrote a touching message, saying: ‘i love you mum, archie would bring so proud of the way you looked after me.’

‘Sending all my love Kym,’ former Brookside star Jennifer Ellison added, while Zoe Clark-Coates, CEO of baby loss charity Saying Goodbye, penned: ‘Love you and thinking of you. Archie has and always will continue to make such a difference as you have ensured his legacy lives on with your work at Saying Goodbye.’

Kym has worked tirelessly over the years to raise awareness of baby loss, and previously revealed how thrilled she was to learn that the government had chosen to expand its baby loss certificate scheme.

When the scheme was first launched in February 2024, parents who had experienced a loss after September 2018 were eligible for a baby loss certificate.

In October 2024, the government scrapped the time limit, and any parent who experienced a loss before 24 weeks, or 28 weeks if the loss occurred before October 1992, is now eligible.

‘These certificates mean so much,’ Kym had told BBC Breakfast at the time of the law change.

‘As we’ve heard already, it makes your baby not just a statistic. My Archie was here. I gave birth to him, I held him, we had a funeral, and he mattered. He mattered to all of us, and for us to not get anything that recognised that he was here was absolutely heartbreaking, because he was a little person, and he was our little person.

‘We’re so delighted. This is a huge win for all of us, a huge win for Saying Goodbye and Mariposa International. It’s just fantastic.’

During her time on Coronation Street, Kym’s character Michelle was at the centre of a harrowing baby loss storyline, which mirrored Kym’s own experiences.

The storyline was met with critical acclaim, and was even mentioned during a discussion in the House of Commons.