Former The Voice UK contestant Dean Franklin has died.
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The news comes just weeks after the singer was diagnosed with stage 4 oesophageal cancer. Franklin was 36.
The London-born singer died on Feb. 7, his family confirmed in an Instagram post.
“With broken hearts, we announce that our precious Dean, who fought so courageously for 8 weeks and 3 days, passed away at 21:39 on 7th February 2026. He was surrounded by love, with his family by his side,” Franklin’s family wrote alongside a snapshot of The Voice alum performing.
“In time, we will share more when we are able. Until then, please know that the love and support you showed Dean — and all of us — has meant more than words can express,” they added.
“Very sad…. He was a brave man and sang for many fans right up to the end. He clearly had a great effect on many people! My thoughts are with his family and close friends,” one fan wrote in the comments section.
“Incredible talent, beautiful soul, and a warrior until the end,” another fan added.
“Broken-hearted for you all. Thankfully, he was surrounded by love,” a third fan wrote.
Dean Franklin Announced His Cancer Diagnosis Back in December
In an emotional video posted on Instagram in December, Franklin revealed his cancer diagnosis. The singer provided regular health updates in the weeks that followed, with the most recent shared on Jan. 30.
“Over the last few weeks, my life has changed very fast,” the father of one explained on Instagram then. “What started as esophageal cancer ended up spreading aggressively to my liver, and weirdly, I had almost no symptoms from the oesophagus itself.”
After detailing his health challenges, he said, “Sometimes cancer doesn’t shout where it starts. Sometimes it whispers and shows itself somewhere else.”
“Right now, I’m in palliative care while still continuing treatment. I’ve chosen to keep fighting with chemo even though it has been incredibly tough,” Franklin told fans. “Some days have been harder than others, especially the nighttime.”
“Every bit of love, I feel every single piece of it,” he added.“If there’s one thing that I’d ask is please listen to your body, push for answers, don’t ignore changes and early checks really, really do matter,” Franklin concluded.
Franklin (under the name Deano Boroczky) impressed the judges during the blind auditions of The Voice UK‘s 2016 season, with Paloma Faith becoming his mentor.