Emmerdale’s Samantha Giles shares mum’s devastating health battle hours before stage show
(Image: ITV)
Emmerdale’s Samantha Giles has spoken out about the heartache she endured when her beloved mother suffered a severe stroke, which tragically struck just hours before Samantha was due to perform on stage.
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The soap star had just arrived in Shrewsbury, gearing up for an afternoon show of the comedy ‘The Syndicate’, where she was sharing the bill with Coronation Street’s Brooke Vincent.
Samantha, who is renowned for her role as the feisty Bernice Blackstock in Emmerdale since the 90s, was in the midst of her tour when the distressing news came through.
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“It was a brain haemorrhage and most people die when they have that,” she disclosed.
She received the alarming update on a Wednesday, a particularly demanding day with two scheduled performances.
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Incredibly, despite the shock, Samantha mustered the strength to go on stage.
While others might be overwhelmed by such harrowing circumstances, she chose to carry on, determined not to let down her fans.
She shared with the Daily Star: “If you are doing a TV show and something disastrous happens in your family, you can reschedule things but you can’t do that with a stage show.”, reports the Mirror.
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“People had bought tickets and everything. There were understudies, of course, but you don’t want to let people down.
“I decided to do the show. It was very difficult to navigate going on stage.”.
During each performance, she was tormented by not knowing her mother’s condition, describing the period as “very challenging”.
In a candid revelation, she confessed she’s at a loss as to how she kept going. Fortunately, she later got the all-clear that surgery wasn’t necessary and “everything was under control”.
She shared: “Mum has done really well because 80% of people who have that kind of stroke die.
“It’s amazing she is still here; it could have been very different. She is doing OK; cognitively, she is quite challenged.
“She finds it difficult with dates and days. It’s been a slow recovery process, and she’s got a long way to go.
“It’s frustrating for her at times. She knows she’s not the person that she was. But it’s amazing she is still here.”
Despite the hurdles, Samantha is keen to tread the boards again. She expressed her desire to delve into more theatre work, optimistic that a promising opportunity will arise.
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She elaborated on how distinct it feels from her television gigs, marvelling at the thought that they’re even considered the same profession.