Heartwarming tributes flow for former Australian Idol star Courtney Murphy amid cancer diagnosis
Much-loved Perth musician Courtney Murphy has received an outpouring of support since announcing he had been diagnosed with late-stage bowel cancer, with a fundraiser exceeding $100,000 in just a few days.
Murphy burst to national attention when he stormed into contention on the second season of Australian Idol in 2004, eventually finishing third behind winner Casey Donovan and runner-up Anthony Callea.
He has been a stalwart of the Perth music scene ever since, while also landing a role in the Queen musical “We Will Rock You”.
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Courtney’s brothers, Kieran and Chris, said the self-employed musician always felt so privileged to make a living off music.
“It’s how he supports his wife and three young children,” Kieran said.
To ease the financial burden on his young family, a GoFundMe page with a target of $120,000 was set-up by the brothers, which has reached more than $104,000 to date.
Chris shared the crowd-funding initiative to Instagram on Tuesday with the caption: “Hi everyone, if you could spare a couple of minutes to check out this GoFundMe page for our brother, Courtney who has recently been diagnosed with advanced bowel cancer.
“Every little bit helps during this trying time for his young family.”
Support flooded in for Courtney as his plight became known to friends and followers of the family.
“Omg mate. So sorry to hear this news. My love and thoughts to you, Courtney and the whole Murphy family,” one person wrote.
Another commented: “I’m beyond devastated with grief. My huge huge love and heart with you all. Biggest wishes to you all rn”.
The 44-year-old’s prognosis was laid bare for would-be donors on the GoFundMe page, as the Murphy family are hoping the public dig deep to assist with the path ahead.
The page reads: “As a self-employed musician with a wife and three young children, Courtney will not be able to work for the foreseeable future which leaves his young family fighting much harder than we want them to be.
“Anyone who knows Courtney knows that his heart is as a big as his voice and we’ve set up this GoFundMe page in the hope that we can ease some of the burden on his young family.
“Any funds generated will go directly to Courtney Murphy, his wife Jane and children as they navigate the difficult road ahead.”
Tragically, the news of the young father’s diagnosis comes off the back of the death of his own dad.
“We lost our Dad in January to a brain tumour,” Chris said.
“Now Court is fighting for his own life.”
To donate: https://gofund.me/34cd3c18
