Celebrity Gossip

Actress Lynda Bellingham, famous for long-running role as mother in Oxo TV adverts, dies in husband's arms after battle with cancer
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Lynda Bellingham
Lynda Bellingham Photo: REX

Actress and presenter Lynda Bellingham, who had been suffering from cancer, has died in her husband's arms.
The 66-year-old star, best known for her long-running role as a mother in the Oxo TV adverts, had been battling colon cancer, which later spread to her lungs and liver, since being diagnosed in July last year.
She died in the arms of her husband Michael in hospital on Sunday, her agent Sue Latimer said.
The actress said she decided to end her treatment on August 13 to limit the amount of suffering her family would witness.
In a statement on behalf of Bellingham's family, her agent, Sue Latimer, said: "Lynda died peacefully in her husband's arms yesterday evening at a London hospital.

"Her family, to whom she was devoted, would like to thank the nurses and staff for their tremendous care and support.
"As an actor, writer and presenter, Lynda was a consummate professional to the very end.
"Those of us privileged to have known her personally will miss the entertaining, life enhancing, true and honest friend that blessed our lives."
The actress openly discussed her decision to stop her cancer treatment earlier this year.
She was one of the presenters of ITV's Loose Women and told her co-hosts she was "in a good place" when she made the decision, saying: "It is essential to feel you have some control of your life."
In an emotional message, she told viewers: "Grasp it all, don't be afraid, enjoy the bits you can and tell your family you love them while you have the chance."
The actress was diagnosed with colon cancer little over a year ago, which later spread to her lungs and liver.
Ms Bellingham, who married Michael Pattemore in 2008, opted to end her chemotherapy treatment.
Poignantly, she said she wanted to spend one last Christmas with her family and hopefully die in January 2015.
Ms Bellingham's decision to end her treatment was revealed in a newspaper serialisation of her forthcoming autobiography.
She said: "The decision to give up chemo was a huge relief because I took back some control of myself. It's there on the table if I want it.
"I don't want the boys or my husband to see me die a little sad old lady. I want to go out there as I am."
She said she wanted her autobiography to be "uplifting", adding: "I wrote the book for everybody out there.
"It's not supposed to be an embarrassing account of me having terminal cancer.
"I wanted to write it for everybody who is given that curveball and say of course there are no answers but, if you can, take it and make it positive and talk about dying.
"If two people read this book and think 'Actually, that's how I feel and I'm not on my own', then I'll have done something half decent."
Ms Bellingham, who took part in the 2009 series of Strictly Come Dancing, was also a panellist on ITV show Loose Women in recent years.
She filmed a special farewell episode of the ITV show, which is yet to air, in which she received a standing ovation.
She also presented a number of other programmes, following an acting career which saw her star in dramas such as At Home With The Braithwaites and The Bill.

RIP Lynda :(

amazing women

I saw her in real life giving awards to the charity sector

Former Coronation Street actress Gwen Taylor has revealed that she has cancer.

Taylor, who starred in the stage version of Calendar Girls with the late Lynda Bellingham, told the Derby Telegraph that she feels both lucky and guilty that she is winning her own battle with the disease after identifying it early.
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Gwen Taylor (Anne, Corrie)
© Rex Features / ITV
Gwen Taylor as Anne in Coronation Street
ynda Bellingham appears on This MorningL
© Rex Features / Ken McKay

"I was in the bathroom listening to the radio when it came on that [Lynda] had passed away," she recalled. "It was just so shocking and deeply upsetting. She was such a nice person.

"It made me think how lucky I am. I had breast cancer and underwent surgery in August. I also had radiotherapy but I haven't needed chemotherapy.

"I'm lucky because the lump was quite tiny and we managed to catch it early. Of course, it was nowhere near as serious as what we've seen happen with Lynda.

"I feel like there's a future for me and I'm really pleased. But I feel guilty - I'm one of the lucky ones."

The 75-year-old actress also described Bellingham as a "wonderful person", who worked hard, did a lot for charity and was also very stylish.

"When I heard her talk on the radio, I thought it was one of the bravest things I've heard," Taylor continued. "The way she spoke about it really got me.

"She was a wonderful person. Off the screen and stage, she was exactly the same smashing woman."

Taylor appeared as Anne Foster in Coronation Street from 2011 until 2012. She also starred as the titular character in ITV sitcom Barbara and had a role in Heartbeat.

After being diagnosed with cancer last year, Bellingham passed away earlier this week (October 19) at the age of 66.

Famous as the Oxo mum and for her roles in Doctor Who, All Creatures Great and Small, The Bill and more, Bellingham also was a regular panellist on Loose Women for several years.

Former Coronation Street actress Gwen Taylor has revealed that she has cancer.

Taylor, who starred in the stage version of Calendar Girls with the late Lynda Bellingham, told the Derby Telegraph that she feels both lucky and guilty that she is winning her own battle with the disease after identifying it early.
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Gwen Taylor (Anne, Corrie)
© Rex Features / ITV
Gwen Taylor as Anne in Coronation Street
ynda Bellingham appears on This MorningL
© Rex Features / Ken McKay

"I was in the bathroom listening to the radio when it came on that [Lynda] had passed away," she recalled. "It was just so shocking and deeply upsetting. She was such a nice person.

"It made me think how lucky I am. I had breast cancer and underwent surgery in August. I also had radiotherapy but I haven't needed chemotherapy.

"I'm lucky because the lump was quite tiny and we managed to catch it early. Of course, it was nowhere near as serious as what we've seen happen with Lynda.

"I feel like there's a future for me and I'm really pleased. But I feel guilty - I'm one of the lucky ones."

The 75-year-old actress also described Bellingham as a "wonderful person", who worked hard, did a lot for charity and was also very stylish.

"When I heard her talk on the radio, I thought it was one of the bravest things I've heard," Taylor continued. "The way she spoke about it really got me.

"She was a wonderful person. Off the screen and stage, she was exactly the same smashing woman."

Taylor appeared as Anne Foster in Coronation Street from 2011 until 2012. She also starred as the titular character in ITV sitcom Barbara and had a role in Heartbeat.

After being diagnosed with cancer last year, Bellingham passed away earlier this week (October 19) at the age of 66.

Famous as the Oxo mum and for her roles in Doctor Who, All Creatures Great and Small, The Bill and more, Bellingham also was a regular panellist on Loose Women for several years.

RIP Lynda and I hope Gwen recovers

Singer Alvin Stardust has died aged 72 after a short illness.

He had recently been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer and died at home with his wife, Julie, and family around him, his manager said.

Born Bernard Jewry in the East End of London in 1942, his hits included My Coo Ca Choo, Jealous Mind and I Feel Like Buddy Holly.

The former glam rock star had been due to release his first studio album in 30 years on 3 November.

He recently announced the record, titled Alvin, was finished and would represent "a new and exciting departure" of which he was "immensely proud".

Stardust grew up in Mansfield and started playing guitar as a schoolboy. He met one of his biggest influences, Buddy Holly, at a gig in Doncaster and played backstage with the singer and his band the Crickets.

He signed his first record deal in 1961 as the frontman of Shane Fenton and the Fentones, though the band struggled to get in the charts.

In 1973 he signed with Magnet Records and took on the name that would make him famous.

"It started off as Elvin Starr, because they wanted a kind of rocky, country name," he recalled in 2010.

"But [a woman] who was doing promotion for us said it wasn't 'glam-rocky' enough, so it became Stardust and then Alvin."

The singer previously recorded under the name Shane Fenton
My Coo Ca Choo, the debut song under his new guise, peaked at number two in the UK singles chart.

Known for his rockabilly quiff, sideburns and black gloves, he projected a glowering persona he said he adopted because he was nervous and "didn't want to be found out".

His success led to him being part of a Green Cross Code road safety campaign in 1976, which saw him instructing children to look both ways before they crossed the road.

That success continued into the 1980s with Pretend, I Feel Like Buddy Holly and I Won't Run Away all making the top 10.

Once described as "the Godfather of British Rock 'n' Roll" by Rolling Stone Keith Richards, he made sporadic acting appearances in Hollyoaks, The Grimleys and Doctors.

He also appeared on stage in such musicals as Godspell, The Phantom of the Opera and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium, in which he played the fearsome Child Catcher.

Stardust was married three times. His first wife was Iris Caldwell, with whom he had two sons, Shaun and Adam.

His second wife was the actress Liza Goddard, with whom he had a daughter named Sophie.

"RIP Alvin Stardust," Goddard tweeted on Thursday. "Thank you for our beautiful daughter and granddaughter."

Stardust went on to marry Julie Paton, an actress and choreographer, with whom he had a daughter, Millie.

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Alvin Stardust talks to BBC Breakfast in 2010
Shaun is now a headmaster of a school in Reigate, while his brother is a producer and DJ who records under the name Adam F.

DJ Tony Blackburn remembered the singer as "a great showman" who would be "sorely missed". "Performing was his life," added the veteran broadcaster.

"He had this bad boy image, but he was not like that at all," Blackburn continued. "On stage he was brilliant, but off stage he was just an ordinary guy."

Stardust, a committed Christian, was also remembered as "a great bloke" by his former Hollyoaks co-star Jeremy Edwards.

"RIP Alvin Stardust, the original landlord of the Dog in the Pond," the actor wrote on Twitter, referring to the Channel 4 series' fictional public house.

"I may not have known him long, but even in that short time he proved to be one of the most genuine and likeable men I've ever met," said the singer's manager Andy Davies.

"His passing is a huge and sad loss."


RIP Alvin :(

Leonard Nimoy has passed away at the age of 83.

The actor and filmmaker, who rose to fame as Mr Spock in the Star Trek TV series and movies, died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his wife confirmed to the New York Times.
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Leonard Nimoy at the LA premiere of Star Trek Into Darkness
© PA Images / AP/Press Association Images

Nimoy revealed last year that he was suffering from the disease, caused by smoking in his younger years. He had been treated in hospital earlier this week.

Nimoy began his career in the early '50s teaching acting and appearing in B movies, such as 1952'a Kid Monk Baroni, and TV roles. He also served in the United States Army in 1953.

In 1965, Nimoy played Mr Spock for the first time in the rejected Star Trek pilot 'The Cage'. He retained the role when the show was taken to series and portrayed the character on the small screen until 1969.

After success as Spock, Nimoy played Paris for two season on Mission: Impossible and appeared in Invasion of the Body Snatchers before Star Trek: The Motion Picture brought the original cast to the big screen in 1979.

Nimoy played Spock in several more sequels, directing '80s outings Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.

After a long absence from the role, he returned to play Spock twice more in JJ Abrams's Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness. Nimoy's 'Spock Prime' provided a bridge between the classic Trek and the new timeline led by Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto.

Nimoy's other notable acting parts include the Abrams-produced TV series Fringe and voice roles in Transformers: The Movie and The Simpsons monorail episode.


RIP Leonard

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Perdita

Leonard Nimoy has passed away at the age of 83.

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That's sad. Rest in peace. :(

Leonard Nimoy's last tweet (on 22nd February 2015):

A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP

(LLAP = live long and prosper, Mr Spock's catchphrase.)

What a beautiful, if sad, sentiment (especially given his death a few days later). :(