Liliana Myers, the widow of Hairy Bikers star Dave Myers, has spoken out after being told to "get on with life" and stop "crying all over Facebook" in cruel social media posts.
The TV chef, one half of the Hairy Bikers along with Si King, died at the age of 66 in February 2024, after a two-year battle with cancer. He left behind his wife Liliana and two stepchildren, whom he "loved like his own" and who brought him "such happiness", according to a tribute marking his passing. The couple had been married for 13 years.
Posts 'written for people going through one of the toughest periods'
Liliana continues to honour his legacy through frequent Facebook updates, which she says are intended to help others dealing with grief, loss and anguish. Sharing her raw emotions and discussing the impact his death has had on her, she hopes to help those facing the same devastation.
However, she has now felt compelled to respond after comments appeared on her page telling her to "get on with life" and stop "crying all over Facebook." Stating she was not there to "judge", she emphasised she wished to "make one thing clear".
She explained: "My posts are not written for everyone. They are written for people who are going through one of the toughest periods of their lives."
"For people living through loss. For people facing uncertainty. For people who are angry, frightened, exhausted, confused or in despair. For people trying to adjust to a life they never asked for. And most importantly, they are written from a place of grief."
'Grief has no timetable'
Liliana shared that her posts all stemmed from her own experiences which left her feeling the "kind of grief that changes you". She continued: "The kind that follows you into ordinary moments, sits beside you in silence, catches you unexpectedly and makes you realise that the life you knew no longer exists in quite the same way."
"I write about grief because I live with it. I write because sometimes putting words to something is the only way I can make sense of it. Because grief has so many faces - sadness, anger, fear, guilt, loneliness, disbelief, exhaustion, even moments of peace - and none of them make the grief any less real."
"I have experienced enough of it to know that there is no simple instruction to 'get on with life.' You do get on with life. But you do it with grief."
"You learn to carry something you never wanted to carry. You learn to live around an absence. You find a way forward without pretending that what happened didn't change you."
She stressed she wasn't doing this because she wished to remain trapped in sorrow or sought sympathy - nor because she thought grief ought to shape the remainder of their existence. She continued: "I write because somewhere behind a screen there may be someone sitting alone, feeling something they cannot explain, wondering whether they are the only one who feels this way."
"Maybe they need to know that someone else understands. Maybe they need words for something they haven't been able to say themselves. Maybe they simply need to be reminded that grief doesn't have a timetable, and that there is no shame in still feeling it."
She concluded by pledging to continue. She said: "If my words aren't for you, that's perfectly okay. But they may be exactly what someone else needs today. And for those people, I will keep writing."
A beloved culinary partnership
Dave formed one half of the beloved Hairy Bikers culinary partnership alongside Si King. The bearded duo became renowned for journeying throughout Britain and internationally on their motorcycles, sampling and preparing regional cuisine.
The pair rose to prominence while fronting The Hairy Bikers' Cookbook on BBC television, which launched with a pilot in 2005 before a complete series aired 12 months later. He met Liliana while filming Hairy Bikers in Romania for the BBC. Other programmes featured The Hairy Bikers Ride Again, The Hairy Bikers' Food Tour of Britain, The Hairy Bikers: Mums Know Best, The Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure and Hairy Bikers: Best of British.
