November 17th 2024.
In a recent interview, former EastEnders actress Cheryl Fergison opened up about her struggles with financial difficulties and the need to visit a food bank. Many will remember Cheryl for her iconic role as Heather Trott on the BBC One soap from 2007 to 2012, as well as her appearances on Celebrity Big Brother and The IT Crowd. But in 2015, Cheryl was faced with a life-changing diagnosis of womb cancer, which forced her to put her acting career on hold and focus on her health.
Despite undergoing a hysterectomy and experiencing early onset menopause as a result of her treatment, Cheryl was determined to fight her cancer and eventually received the all-clear. However, the road to recovery was not easy. Cheryl shared with The Sunday Mirror how her cancer treatment had left her with financial struggles and mental health issues. She had to stop working and was relying on the support of her former EastEnders colleague, Dame Barbara Windsor, who sadly passed away in 2020 at the age of 83. And by February of this year, Cheryl had hit rock bottom and had no money left.
"I didn't have any money to do a weekly shop, I was trying to pay too many debts," Cheryl revealed. "It was a really difficult time. Lots of people can relate to it. You're trying to find a penny. You're literally looking down your settee to see if you can find a quid."
Cheryl's financial struggles were so severe that she had to turn to a food bank for help. When she first heard the suggestion from Citizens Advice, she couldn't help but feel ashamed and cried at the thought of it. "How could I have been earning that much money and now I am here?" she questioned. But with the support of the "angels" at the food bank, Cheryl was able to get back on her feet and return to work, performing in pantos and singing in restaurants.
Her message to others facing similar challenges is to not be embarrassed or see it as a weakness to seek help from food banks. "Whatever the reason, you deserve help," she emphasized. "We have a right to be able to live like a human being and do it in a dignified way."
Cheryl's financial struggles are not the first to be revealed by a former EastEnders star. Rudolph Walker, who played Patrick Trueman on the soap, also shared his experience of being without a stable home and living in a hotel with a shared toilet while working on the show. He admitted to having no financial means and nowhere to live in his 70s, and would often have a cry on his way to the studio before putting on a brave face and carrying on with work.
Cheryl hopes that by sharing her story, she can raise awareness and break the stigma surrounding financial struggles in the entertainment industry. She even resorted to selling her old scripts and bookings to a Chinese restaurant to make ends meet. "I think that people need to get their heads around the fact we have to earn a living," she said. "We are not always fortunate to be filming all the time and working in our chosen and trained profession."
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