Bev Callard recalls cancer diagnosis felt 'like fate' after horrific pregnancies

03 October 2023 , 10:54

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Bev Callard recalls cancer diagnosis felt 'like fate' after horrific pregnancies

Beverley Callard says her cancer diagnosis felt like "fate" after being "very ill" while she was pregnant.

The Coronation Street star, 66, was only 32 when she was diagnosed with cervical cancer after having her second child, Josh. The actress said Josh's sister Rebecca, who was 13 when he was born, was going to be an only child because she was so poorly during her first pregnancy. But after a pleasant "surprise" she gave birth again before finding out she had cancer when her son was just 15 months old.

Speaking to the Mirror about her "shock" diagnosis, Bev said: "I was very ill when I was pregnant. I got cervical cancer when Josh was 15 months old. And all I could think was, 'Oh, my God, that is fate'. You know, someone was smiling on me and looking after me."

Beverley Callard played Liz MacDonald on Coronation Street from 1989 until 2020 (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The actress revealed she needed to have a hysterectomy under doctor's advice and admitted that while she didn't want any more children, she did ask herself if she was "still a woman" and "still feminine". Speaking about the "horror stories" she heard regarding the surgery, she joked the "worst" was that 'you'll grow hair on your chin or won't be able to lift a kettle for 12 weeks'.

After her surgery, Bev had to go back to work, returning to Coronation Street as Britain's much-loved barmaid, Liz McDonald. However, because the cast was a lot smaller than it is now, the actress admitted the schedule was "so awful" and "gruelling". But Bev "cracked on" and got "super fit", saying she was back in the gym 13 days after leaving hospital.

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The soap legend is part of Channel 4's new show Don’t Look Down hosted by Paddy McGuinness (Channel 4)

Recalling one of her first scenes when she returned to the Rovers Return, she said: "I'll never forget, I had to hold a crate of empty bottles in the room and pretend that I'd come out of the cellar with this crate of empty bottles and put it on the bar. And I just did it. I just did it. Because that's what we women do, don't we? You know, my job was everything to me.”

The soap legend is part of Channel 4's new show Don’t Look Down hosted by Paddy McGuinness, which sees nine celebrities face their fears as they try to master the vertigo-inducing art of highwire walking in aid of Stand Up To Cancer. Stating her experience with cancer was the reason for doing the show, Bev concluded: "That's the biggest reason. I felt I had to do this programme. In all seriousness, because if it's an illness you can't see means it's even more important we all talk about.”

* Don't Look Down airs on Channel 4 on Tuesday, 10 October at 9:30PM

Victoria Johns