A couple from Kent have been rewarded for their charity work after appearing on one of Britain’s most loved TV shows.

Tom and Jayne Gower from Wainscott, near Rochester, won a free holiday on the last episode of Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

Unbeknownst to Tom, 40, his wife Jayne had nominated him for a special prize for the family-friendly show which is renowned for its giveaway prizes, last year.

He told KentOnline: “Jayne told me last week that her workplace had got some corporate tickets for the Ant and Dec show and we may get one due to the charity work we have done.”

But, it wasn’t until the Friday she found out that they would be winning something special on air.

In the audience, Tom said they met other couples who all had stories of fundraising – this is because the first episode of the final series of the show had a special twist.

Everyone in the audience received a free seven-night all inclusive holiday for up to four people with an “experience” thrown in too.

Tom added: “We had the moment that Dec stopped the music, and the slow realisation that actually every single one of us was going to win a holiday.

“I won’t lie, it has been a while since I shed a tear but I was close in that moment – It wasn’t even the reward of the holiday, it was the recognition of the hard work we had done had been noticed.”

Through marathons, annual golf and dart events, and other fundraising activities, the couple has raised over £22,000 for baby loss awareness.

In 2018, after seven years of trying, the pair fell pregnant but nearly 41 weeks in they received tragic news.

At Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford, they were told baby Oliver had passed, and that night Jayne went into labour and their baby was stillborn.

Since then, they have been raising money for baby loss awareness, particularly for local charity, Abigail’s Footsteps of which Tom is now an ambassador.

Some of the money they have raised has been used to provide cool cots to hospitals, including Darent Valley.

Cool cots are a refrigerated cot that allows parents to spend more time with their baby before saying goodbye.

“That was massive for us, being able to donate back to the very hospital where it all started,” added Tom.

Abigail’s Footsteps has released a podcast speaking with families who have bravely stepped forward to tell their stories. Click here to listen.

A Journey with Abigail’s Footsteps is an IM Listening production.