Two well-known journalists who have spent 12 years trying to start are family have welcomed the arrival of their 'miracle' baby - created from their 12th and final frozen embryo.
Emily Deeker, 43, is an editor for Sky News and Will Glennon, 52, a journalist at BBC Points West.
But while the couple, who live in Wanborough, might appear smiley on screen, behind closed doors they've been going through 12 years of struggle.
The pair had their first daughter Olivia three years ago from their last-but-one frozen embryo out of 12 and, after battling through multiple failed rounds of IVF, decided to try and give their daughter a sibling from the last frozen embryo left.
It's no surprise that the pair have declared it a 'miracle' when they welcomed baby Harry into the world in Marlborough this October.
"But we absolutely didn't think that it would end in a successful pregnancy and bring in the baby just because we had to do so many rounds of treatment to get our little girl," said Emily, Sky News editor.
“We would have been grateful just to have had our beautiful Olivia after such a long wait, but I was already 42 then so if we were going to try, time was running out.
“But thanks to the continued dedication and expertise of the team at Bristol Centre for Reproductive Medicine (BCRM), here is Harry - and it just feels like he was meant to be."
Harry was born from the last of 12 embryos (Image: SWNS) The well-known journalists have spoken out about their struggles with IVF over the years, and Emily remembers being "desperate" to be a mum when she started fertility treatment in Bristol aged 30.
"At first you think that IVF is going to be the answer to your prayers and often I think what you don't realise when you start it is that it doesn't work for everybody," said Emily.
"We were trying to have a family for 12 years in total and learned not to take anything for granted.
She added: "I haven't felt either time that I was able to enjoy the pregnancy. I think long time IVF robs you of the joy of pregnancy.
"There's loads of people like us that don't have a diagnosis or reason to why it is not working because I think that if you know that there's a problem in your head you can sort of understand it in a way."
BCRM is the longest established fertility clinic in Bristol and has one of the best success rates with IVF and other fertility treatments in the UK.
Emily and Will are now urging others struggling with IVF to stay hopeful.
Olivia with her new baby brother (Image: SWNS) “We consider ourselves very lucky to be living at a time when fertility treatment is quite widely available and can produce such miraculous results because being able to have a baby naturally is not something everyone can take for granted," said the couple.
“If we had lived a few decades ago, before IVF was available, things would probably have been very different, but now not a month goes by without more developments in the field that directly benefit current patients.
“So I would urge anyone with fertility issues to be patient and keep trying if they can because our own perseverance did finally pay off, although I appreciate we are among the lucky ones, given that people sometimes run out of hope, money or strength and can only go so far.
"It says a huge amount about the team at BCRM that we stayed with them throughout our entire, very long, IVF journey."
Emily and Will now say they're "deliriously happy and tired", and looking forward to Christmas as a family of four.
Share