Emotional moment ‘kind' Davina McCall meets girl, 11, who has brain tumour just like she did
TV star Davina McCall cheers a brain tumour girl as they chat about their treatment.
Davina had hers removed on the day Kirsty Waugh, 11, was diagnosed.
4
4
4
Kirsty's parents Mat and Kate noticed the coincidence and asked if the 57-year-old star could send a supportive message.
Davina obliged, and also visited the family in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.
Mat said: 'She is as lovely and generous as you'd hope.
'There was lots of laughing and hugging.'
Kirsty's 70 weeks of chemo are starting to shrink the tumour.
She can read and watch films again.
Mat said: "Davina had her brain tumour removed on the same day that Kirsty was admitted to hospital and diagnosed.
"She is local to us so I wondered if we could get a message from her.
"They talked a lot about their respective cancer treatment.
"It was a really uplifting experience. We all felt better for having spoken to her.
Watch emotional moment Davina McCall breaks down in tears and says 'I'm still here' in first interview after brain surgery
4
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Kate Garraway reveals she still wakes up at night panicking that she hasn't given her late husband Derek Draper his medicine as she reflects on his end of life care
Kate Garraway has revealed that she still wakes up in the the night panicking that she hasn't given her late husband Derek Draper his medicine. The TV presenter and broadcaster, 58, reflected on his end of life care in a candid new interview on Wednesday. Derek died at the age of 56 in January 2024 following a four-year battle with long Covid. Speaking in The Sun, she told of how those tough years remain in her thoughts. She explained: 'I still wake up in the middle of the night panicking that I haven't given him his medicine, or that I have forgotten to move him every hour to prevent the painful contractions in his limbs. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'The next second I realise he no longer needs that care. There is a moment of relief — that I did not let him down — before a tsunami of sadness hits. 'Caring takes over your whole life. You don't begrudge it, but you suffer because of it.' In 2023, Kate was hospitalised with 'excruciating' chest pains after suffering extreme stress while husband Derek was in recovery. She needed medical assistance of her own after being woken by the 2am alarm she sets each night for Good Morning Britain - and discovering she couldn't move to turn it off. In her book, The Strength Of Love, the presenter described how she then felt a 'searing pain' in her chest and was immediately taken to the nearest A&E for tests. Kate has been busy juggling a hectic work schedule, as the true extent of her debts are revealed. She has openly discussed how she has been left with debts between £500,000 and £800,000 after caring for her late husband Derek. As well as tackling debts related to the £16,000 a month costs for his care, a new liquidator's report has revealed the large tax costs that are yet to be paid by Derek's now-defunct psychotherapeutic company Astra Aspera. The company, which was jointly controlled by Kate, went bust owing hundreds of thousands of pounds to creditors, including a large bill to HMRC. Kate has been busy promoting her various work projects as her debts loom over her but it's not the first time the broadcaster has had to deal with financial woes. In 2012, two other firms jointly controlled by Derek and Kate went bust. Fulfill Media Ltd had debts totalling £922,807, which included £88,486 owed to HMRC, £90,882 to trade creditors, and £462,808 in 'third party loans'. At the same time, Countrymouse Media Ltd, was liquidated owing £189,121, which included £98,944 to the taxman and £48,000 on an overdrawn directors loan account. Derek and Kate were both personally owed £24,000 each by the business. In January 2024, it was reported that Kate may have to sell the home to repay her current debts with one source saying: 'It has cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to look after Derek and do everything she could to get him better but it's left her struggling.' But hard-working Kate has been on a self-promotion blitz amid her latest financial woes. Alongside her regular GMB work, the star plugged her Smooth Radio show this week, revealing she was 'chuffed' that the lunchtime show now reached 2.8million listeners. She has also been teasing her signing in perhaps one of the most anticipated TV shows of year - Celebrity Traitors. Along with the likes of Stephen Fry, Alan Carr and Jonathan Ross Kate headed to Scotland a few weeks ago to film the spin off of the smash hit BBC series. Meanwhile, in February she was announced as the host of a new Dubai-set podcast and YouTube series - DXB Unheard. Each of the eight episodes, which are released weekly, feature interviews with Emiratis and Dubai residents 'who have left an indelible mark on the city.' She filmed the series last year and has admitted that she found it 'interesting' to learn about how people lived their lives at a time when she was contemplating her future plans. Kate previously revealed that Derek's £16,000-a-month care costs eclipsed her GMB salary, admitting in a 2023 interview that she couldn't even afford to have the heating on in October. Speaking before her husband's death, Kate said: 'Derek's care costs more than my salary from ITV and that is before you pay for a mortgage, before you pay any household bills, before you pay for anything for the kids, so we are at a crunch point. 'I am in debt. I can't earn enough money to cover my debt because I am managing Derek's care and I can't even use the money I do have to support Derek's recovery, because it's going on the basics all the time.' In May last year, Kate candidly revealed she's resorted to withdrawing money from her pension pot to pay the huge bills during a discussion about the NHS and private care on GMB. Sharing the results of a survey that revealed one in five Brits are getting themselves into debt while funding private medical care, she admitted: 'I am doing something similar myself. 'I have had to withdraw the bit you can tax free from my pension to pay for belated bills for my husband, who has now passed away. 'People are having to do things - it wasn't a huge pension in the first place - which aren't what they saved for.' Addressing the latest HMRC filing, Kate's spokesperson told MailOnline on Wednesday that the 'shocked' TV star 'doesn't recognise these figures' and is in contact with HMRC to make sure she 'honours what is required'. Their statement read: 'Kate has met all that the liquidators of Derek's company have asked for and more over the past four years. 'She doesn't recognise these figures and is shocked that it's being presented in this way by them. 'Caring for Derek and supporting her family when Derek could no longer run his own businesses has taken a huge financial toll on her but she's determined to put things right.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Harold Shipman: New Mail podcast explores the 'unusual' early life of Doctor Death and the missed warning signs that foreshadowed his killing spree
On the latest episode of the Mail's 'An Appointment with Murder', forensic psychiatrist Dr. Andrew Johns and police surgeon Dr. Harry Brunjes interrogate the 'unusual' early life of serial killer Harold Shipman. They also examine how institutions failed to spot Shipman's increasingly erratic and suspicious behaviour, despite the trail of deaths that followed him from practice to practice. An Appointment with Murder is a brand-new true crime podcast that delves into the minds, methods, and motivations of medical murderers. Medical murderers are those who pervert their positions of trust, as doctors or nurses, to prey on the public. The season opens with a study of the infamous cases of doctors Harold Shipman and John Bodkin Adams. Shipman, a GP, is suspected of killing 215-250 patients between the years 1975 and 1998 by injecting them with lethal doses of diamorphine (medical heroin). Dr Andrew Johns, podcast co-host, was called to give expert testimony during the official inquiry into Shipman's murders. Adolescence Harold Shipman was born to a working-class family in Nottingham in 1946. He was the son of a lorry driver and the 'apple of his mother's eye', as Dr. Johns told the podcast. At 17, Shipman's mother, Vera, was diagnosed with lung cancer. At the time, there was no treatment for the illness apart from using opiates to manage pain. Dr Johns suspects that exposure to this class of drugs at a young age had a profound effect on the young man. He said: 'The GP would visit Vera at home and give her regular injections of morphine to relieve her pain. 'It's a highly addictive opiate that, in large doses, kills through respiratory depression. It simply stops you from breathing. 'Shipman witnesses the powerful effect of that drug on his mother and how it ultimately eases her passing. What impression did that doctor and needle have on him? ' When Vera succumbed to her cancer, it was Shipman who discovered her body coming home from school. To combat his grief, Shipman begins using Sloan's Liniment, a pain killer, recreationally. In high doses, the over-the-counter medication can produce a slight high. On the eve of moving to medical school, Dr John describes Shipman as an 'odd, reclusive chap'. Early Medical Career Shipman studies at Yorkshire's Pontefract General Infirmary and in 1971, is named House Officer of the hospital. Despite being only a Junior Doctor, Shipman certifies 133 deaths during his time at the hospital. As Dr Johns explains: 'As a Junior, Shipman is regarded as overconfident. The official inquiry conjectured that he started misusing the drug Pethidine around this time. 'Pethidine is also an opiate painkiller, but it's synthetic – it's prescribed for moderate to strong pain, unlike morphine, which is used for severe pain. 'At Pontefract, Shipman certifies 133 deaths. There's nothing particularly high about that number until you notice he was present at a third of all deaths. 'Junior Doctors are rarely present at the time of the death. Shipman was present at death 20 times more often than any other Junior Doctor.' After Pontefract, Shipman becomes a qualified GP and moves to Morton, a small town in Leeds, to work in a surgery. At this time, Shipman's judgment and general demeanour become more erratic with his addiction to opiates escalating. 'Shipman is dogmatic about his medical judgement. He's extremely critical of those he deems intellectually inferior', Dr Johns said. 'After several blackouts, including a collapse in front of patients, Shipman is found slumped over the wheel of his car. He claims he's epileptic. 'Following a routine audit, it is discovered that he has forged prescriptions for 30,000 milligrams of Pethidine. That is 600 normal doses.' Shipman admits to using the Pethidine recreationally and is fired and sent to a drug rehabilitation program in York. Despite a Magistrate's Court finding him guilty of forging prescriptions, the General Medical Council let Shipman off with a warning. He would then move to Hyde in Greater Manchester, again working as a GP, where the majority of his murders would take place.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Awkward! How the new chairman of Reform UK called party leader Nigel Farage 'an idiot' and branded his comments about HIV-infected migrants using the NHS 'prejudiced'
Reform UK's new chairman once called leader Nigel Farage an 'idiot', it emerged last night. Dr David Bull, who was unveiled as Zia Yusuf's replacement, also branded as 'prejudiced' comments that Mr Farage had made about HIV-infected migrants using the NHS. The remarks surfaced just hours after Dr Bull gave his maiden speech as chairman and threatened to overshadow his appointment, while at a Press conference unveiling the new chairman, Mr Farage unexpectedly ruled out putting the return of the death penalty on Reform's manifesto at the next general election. Dr Bull's comments, first reported by The Daily Telegraph, were made on social media in 2014. He posted them after Mr Farage, then leader of his previous party UKIP, suggested that HIV-positive immigrants should not be allowed to come to the UK and receive treatment on the NHS. He said it should not be used as a 'global health service', adding: 'I do not think people with life-threatening diseases should be treated by our National Health Service, and that is an absolute essential condition for working out a proper immigration policy.' Sharing an article about Mr Farage's comments, Dr Bull wrote on X/ Twitter: 'Nigel Farage's comments are ill-judged, prejudiced and dangerous. HIV can affect anyone regardless of sex, race and class.' In the post, still visible online, he added: '#idiot #unhelpful.' Dr Bull, 56, is a long-time ally of Mr Farage and has held roles in both Reform and its former iteration, the Brexit Party. He served as an MEP for North West England between 2019 and 2020. Mr Farage said that Dr Bull would bring 'terrific verve, energy, enthusiasm' to his new role. Mr Yusuf plunged the party into turmoil on Thursday after announcing his shock resignation on social media, giving Mr Farage only ten minutes' notice. He said he was quitting after attacking one of his own MPs, Sarah Pochin, for calling for a burka ban during Prime Minister's Questions. But just 48 hours after leaving, he said he was returning to the party. The 38-year-old businessman said his resignation had been 'born of exhaustion' after working for the party for 11 months 'without a day off'. He will now lead Reform's Elon Musk-inspired Doge unit, which the party says will root out wasteful spending in the ten councils it controls, starting in Kent. The decision not to include anything in Reform's manifesto about the death penalty will likely disappoint millions of its voters. A poll by the think-tank More In Common in January found nearly eight in ten of its backers support it 'for certain crimes'. Mr Farage said 'nothing on the death penalty will be part of [Reform] party policy' and that 'personally I don't think I could ever support it'. He said he was opposed because of hundreds of 'quite serious miscarriages of justice' having emerged since the 70s, adding that he believed it will become a big national issue because of polling suggesting younger generations are increasingly in favour. It may lead to suspicions that Mr Farage is trying to make Reform UK appear less Right-wing and controversial as it increasingly tries to target Labour voters. It also emerged that Reform lost nearly 3,500 members in the past week amid the Yusuf fiasco.
