Lucy Davis made a public appearance at For the Love of Fantasy & Sci-Fi at London's ExCeL on Saturday, where she reflected on her career and shared heartfelt advice with fans. The appearance came just 11 days after she revealed she has been privately living with incurable stage four breast cancer for around 18 months.
The 53-year-old actress was in good spirits on stage alongside friends Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright. She spoke about the support of fans, saying: "It's like this whole second family you never knew you had. Everyone is like a community, friendly, supportive of us, but you guys and each other. So I'm quite hopeful about that, to be honest."
She added: "We need a bit more niceness in the world, and we get it here. So I'm grateful for you guys."
Advice to fans
Asked what advice she would offer others pursuing their ambitions, Davis said: "Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do or be anything that you want to do or be."
She continued: "We all grow up just with lies from the world telling us that we all have limitations, and none of us do. Our only limitations are the things that we think are limiting us. You can do anything and be anybody, and don't apologise for it."
The actress revealed in August that her cancer had metastasised to her bones, including her spine, right hip and ribs, and said it was incurable and too late for chemotherapy. She explained that the first sign had been a tiny hard spot which she almost did not get checked, and urged others not to dismiss changes in their bodies.
Career highlights and memories
Davis shot to fame as receptionist Dawn Tinsley in the BBC comedy The Office in 2001. Her slow-burning romance with Martin Freeman's Tim Canterbury became one of the most beloved storylines in British TV history.
She went on to appear in Shaun of the Dead in 2004 alongside Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Dylan Moran, and Bill Nighy. Her later career included roles in Wonder Woman, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Black Books, Ugly Betty and Death in Paradise. She is the daughter of comedian Jasper Carrott.
Reflecting on surreal moments, Davis recalled sitting next to Quentin Tarantino at a screening of Shaun of the Dead years ago. "Quentin Tarantino sat next to me and was chatting to me, and then he drove me home," she laughed.
Friendship and camaraderie
Davis shared affectionate memories of making Shaun of the Dead, saying: "I loved when we were all pretending to be zombies and trying to walk across the square. The camaraderie between everyone… It was like we were naughty school kids!"
Simon Pegg revealed that he, Davis and Nick Frost used to invent ridiculous songs together. "Me and Lucy and Nick used to just make up silly songs, and we had a whole album of songs. I wish we could release that," he said.
Pegg told fans the cast had no idea the film would become a cult hit. "We had no expectations," he said. "We didn't know if it would be seen by anybody other than our parents. But it didn't matter to us, because we were just in that bubble, and it was a really great time. I'll always treasure that shoot."
As the panel ended, Edgar Wright embraced Davis on stage before the pair walked off arm in arm.
