Beverley Callard has revealed she lost consciousness while on the set of her soap opera, prompting an ambulance to be called. The 69-year-old actress, who announced earlier this year she had been diagnosed with breast cancer, told fans: "An ambulance came. I desperately didn't want go go to hospital."
On-set incident in Ireland
Callard, who relocated to Ireland to star as Lily Patterson in the RTE soap Fair City, described the incident on Instagram on Thursday night. She said she had been filming "the most amazing scenes" all week, but then lost consciousness for "a few minutes, maybe 10 minutes" while preparing to run lines with her on-screen daughter, played by Emily.
"Because of protocol, they had to check me out and everything. An ambulance came. I desperately didn't want go go to hospital," she said. The former I'm A Celebrity... star, who recently completed radiotherapy but was told she would need more tests on her stomach, recovered quickly and was sent home to rest.
Recovery and ongoing tests
Callard, best known for playing Rovers landlady Liz McDonald on Coronation Street for almost 30 years, said she felt fine after the incident but could not explain what happened. "I was boiling hot. I seemed to lose 10 minutes but I don't know why. I was checked out by the ambulance men and everything and they were happy to let me come home as long as I rested," she said.
She added: "I feel a complete fraud because I'm home and I feel perfectly normal. The only thing that did happen was my blood pressure was through the roof but obviously I've not been right since the radiotherapy. But aside from that, I don't know what's going on. But I'm at the hospital again next week, so I'll probably know more, and I'm awaiting the results of these other tests and the biopsies they've taken from my stomach."
Fan support
Callard, also known for Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, was inundated with supportive messages from followers. One advised her to let the hospital know about the loss of consciousness, while another encouraged her to rest and take each day at a time. A third wrote: "Bless you Beverley. Have a restful weekend and sending you positive, happy wishes xxx."
The actress concluded: "As I say, I feel a bit of a fraud, but the dogs know I'm poorly, they won't leave me alone again. So, there we go. If anybody else has had this, please let me know, because I don't know what's going on with me at all. Lots of love."
