Chris Rea, the singer known for 'Driving Home for Christmas', left a £12 million gift to his wife Joan, according to court documents seen by The Sun. Rea died three days before Christmas 2025 at the age of 74.
Will details
The court records show Rea left £14,436,894, which dropped to £12,063,178 after taxes, debts, and costs. A grant was issued by the High Court earlier this week. Rea signed his final will in October 2025, two months before his death. In the 19-page document, he stated he wished to be cremated.
Joan will also receive all of Rea's personal belongings and future royalties from his music being played on the radio.
Career highlights
Rea was born in Middlesbrough in 1951 to an Italian father and Irish mother. He joined a local band, Magdalene, in 1973 before starting a solo career. His 1978 debut album, 'Whatever Happened to Benny Santini?', produced the US hit 'Fool (If You Think It's Over)', earning him a Grammy nomination for best new artist.
He released 25 studio albums, including two UK Number Ones: 'The Road to Hell' in 1989 and 'Auberge' in 1991. His festive track 'Driving Home for Christmas' became a household name. Originally released in 1986, it reached number 53 but has since become a winter classic, returning to the UK Singles Chart every year since 2007 and peaking at number 10 in 2021.
Health battles
At age 33, Rea was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, leading to nine operations and 32 weeks in hospital over a decade. He lost his pancreas, gallbladder, and part of his liver to surgeries, and later developed type 1 diabetes. He was taking up to 34 pills a day at one point. In 2016, he suffered a stroke, prompting him to quit cigarettes, and collapsed on stage in Oxford the following year.
Rea once said of his health battles: "The original illness hit me hard. I almost had a nervous breakdown with the shock of it. That was the Mount Everest to climb. When they said it was pancreatic cancer, I could not believe it. It seemed that if your DNA says you are going to have cancer, then you can. They did not think I would recover from the first operation, but I was determined to do so for my wife and the girls."
Personal life and tributes
Rea met his wife Joan when they were teenagers, and they were married for 57 years. They had two daughters: Josephine, born in 1983, and Julia, born in 1989.
Following his death, tributes came from comedian Bob Mortimer, who wrote: "A lovely, brilliant, funny giant of a bloke... RIP Chris." His record label BMG said: "Over a remarkable career spanning more than four decades, Chris Rea created an extraordinary and deeply human body of work, defined by emotional honesty, restraint, and craft." Sound engineer Stuart Epps remembered him as "an amazing guy and an amazing musician," and Squeeze pianist Jools Holland added: "Sad we've lost dear Chris Rea. A brilliant musician and the kindest of men."
