The Chase star Paul Sinha has revealed his quiz teammate, Jon Jacob, has died after contracting coronavirus.
The TV personality, 49, who has said it’s ‘likely’ he has COVID-19 himself, took to Twitter on Tuesday to post a now-deleted tribute to his friend of 10 years.
Calling him the ‘greatest classical music quizzer ever’, Paul shared a picture of himself with Jon and his fellow quiz teammates.
Emotional: The Chase star Paul Sinha has revealed that his quiz teammate, Jon Jacob, has died of the coronavirus (pictured in 2019)
He tweeted: ‘Woken up to the news that Jon Jacob, my friend and quiz teammate for the last decade, has succumbed to corona.
‘Farewell mate, we smashed Sunday afternoons. And you’ll always be the Greatest Classical Music Quizzer ever. (second from left).’
It comes after Paul took to Twitter on Sunday where he told his followers that he thinks he has coronavirus after ‘starting social distancing a few days too late.’
The revelation comes amidst his battle with Parkinson’s disease, of which he revealed in May.
Tribute: The quiz genius, 49, who has said it’s ‘likely’ he has COVID-19 himself, took to Twitter on Tuesday to post a now-deleted moving tribute to his friend for the last decade
Pals: Calling him the ‘greatest classical music quizzer ever’, Paul shared a picture of himself with Jon (second from left) and his fellow quiz teammates
Upsetting: He tweeted: ‘Woken up to the news that Jon Jacob, my friend and quiz teammate for the last decade, has succumbed to corona…’ (pictured in September 2019)
The star, known as ‘The Sinnerman’ on the ITV quiz show managed to make light of the situation however, tweeting that he’ll sneeze on anyone who ‘upsets’ him.
He penned: ‘Although I cant be sure and I cant be tested it seems likely I have Coronavirus.
‘Started social distancing a few days too late. Anyone upsets me; I’ll be around to sneeze in your home.’
His post was soon flooded with messages from fans sharing their support and well-wishes.
Infected? It comes after Paul took to Twitter on Sunday where he told his followers that he thinks he has coronavirus after ‘starting social distancing a few days too late’
Tough: The revelation comes amidst his battle with Parkinson’s disease, of which he revealed in May (pictured in October 2019)
In May, Paul revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. The comedian and quiz expert gave a health update via his Twitter page, vowing to ‘fight with every breath I have’.
Expanding further in an impassioned blog post, the television personality said he was initially ‘in shock’, but ‘feels far more prepared for the new challenges ahead’ now he has a treatment plan in place.
Displaying he trademark humour, he also joked that a Dancing On Ice appearance is now ‘out of the question’, before thanking his family and partner for their support in the wake of his diagnosis.
Battle: Paul – who has has been a chaser on the popular quiz show since 2011 – admitted it has been ‘tough’ since he got the diagnosis (pictured with his fellow The Chase co-stars)
Paul – who has has been a chaser on the popular quiz show since 2011 – admitted it has ‘been a really, really tough two weeks’ since he got the diagnosis but now he has a treatment plan in place he feels ‘prepared for the new challenges ahead’.
Parkinson’s is a condition in which parts of the brain become progressively damaged.
The three main symptoms are: involuntary shaking (tremor), slow movement, stiff and inflexible muscles. As the condition progresses, the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease can get worse.
Parkinson’s disease doesn’t directly cause people to die, but the condition can place great strain on the body.
In December, Paul announced that he had married his long-term partner Olly.
He wrote on his blog about the details of the day, where they had a meal with 75 people and a party with 300, and while he admitted things went wrong he calmed down and realised he was ‘having the f**king time of my life’.
Paul went through the day in detail and rounded out his post: ‘Best of all, when I woke up the next morning, I realised: ‘I hadn’t thought about my Parkinson’s once.’
Happy: In December, Paul announced that he had married his long-term partner Olly (pictured in March 2019)