GARY Barlow and his wife Dawn have been mourning the loss of the baby daughter this week.


Dawn, who is from Worcestershire and a former Pershore High School pupil, delivered a stillborn baby, named Poppy, at eight months on Saturday.


In a statement released by his agent the Take That frontman said: “Dawn and I are devastated to announce that we’ve lost our baby. Poppy Barlow was delivered stillborn on August 4 in London. Our focus now is giving her a beautiful funeral and loving our three children with all our hearts. We’d ask at this painful time that our privacy be respected.”


The 41-year-old had previously spoken about how he was looking forward to becoming a father four the fourth time with his wife, a former dancer. Speaking at the time he told fans: “We are a very excited family.”


In April, Gary, already a father to Daniel, Emily and Daisy, wrote on Twitter: “There’s gonna be another girl in the Barlow household!” He was recently asked by a fan on the website how Dawn was, and replied: “gr8 tanx, 7 weeks to go.”


In June he was crowned celebrity dad of the year.


Friends and colleagues of the singer expressed their condolences to the Barlow family on Twitter. Fellow X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos wrote: “My thoughts & prayers are with @GBarlowOfficial and wife dawn tonight. Heartbreaking x.”