EastEnders star Cheryl Fergison cried as she had to visit food bank to eat when cancer battle forced end of career

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Former EastEnders star Cheryl Fergison has broken down in tears after having no money earlier this year and having to visit a food bank just so she could eat.

The actress, who is best known for playing Heather Trott in the BBC1 soap from 2007 to 2012, said she cried when she was taken to her local food bank by a Citizens Advice staff member, after she admitted to them she couldn’t even afford to eat.

The actress, now aged 60, who had to give up her career in 2015 due to a cancer diagnosis, told The Mirror: “I sat there and cried and cried. It was shameful. How could I have been on EastEnders? How could I have been earning that much money and now I am here?

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“It was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. I found it so difficult to be that vulnerable. But I didn’t have any money to do a weekly shop. I was trying to pay too many debts.” She also admitted to the publication that she was “literally looking down [the] settee to see if [she] can find a quid.”

Fergison gave the interview to the publication after it was reported she was selling her old EastEnders scripts for £50 each and also singing in a Chinese restaurant to make ends meet. Her character was killed off by Ben Mitchell in 2012.

Admitting that she “didn’t even look at the price of things” during her time on EastEnders, the mum-of-one’s life spiralled downwards after she was diagnosed with womb cancer in 2015, forcing her to end her career.

Former Eastenders actress Cheryl Fergison has admitted she was forced to use a food bank, after a cancer diagnosis ended her career and she struggled to afford food. Photo by Getty Images.Former Eastenders actress Cheryl Fergison has admitted she was forced to use a food bank, after a cancer diagnosis ended her career and she struggled to afford food. Photo by Getty Images.
Former Eastenders actress Cheryl Fergison has admitted she was forced to use a food bank, after a cancer diagnosis ended her career and she struggled to afford food. Photo by Getty Images. | Nat Jag/Getty Images

She had to undergo a hysterectomy, which led to her starting early menopause. This then caused her to have physical and mental issues, which led to her self-harming. “I was damaging myself so badly,” she said. “As soon as I got the all-clear I stopped doing it. If you’re told you are ill, it’s not just about the physical issue – somehow, you need to figure out what’s going on in your head with it all”

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But by February this year, Fergison, who lives in Cleveleys, near Blackpool, found herself penniless. “It was really a difficult time,” she says. Eventually, she went to her local Citizens Advice branch for help.

“If they did know who I was they didn’t show it and that was what was wonderful. I thought it was embarrassing,” she added.

Talking about being taken to the food bank, the former TV star said: “That day is one I’ll never forget – and I’ll never forget the people. I felt I’d had this amazing, biggest, warmest hug. That’s what it felt like. They were like angels. It was like a group of angels had come along and said ‘we can cope with this for you Cheryl, we can do this for you’.” She left with four bags of groceries as well as food for her dog.

She is looking taking a step back in to acting, and is looking forward to starring as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, in Peterborough, this Christmas. She’s even been joined on stage by her son, Alex, aged 25, who she shares with first husband Jamshed Saddiqi. He will play Buttons.

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Cheryl, who has been married to second husband, Yassim al-Jemoni, age 39, since 2011, hopes opening up about her struggles will help others.

She says: “I hope other people can relate to it. I really want to stress that food banks are a service. They’re there for you to use so please do not feel embarrassed or that it’s a weakness. Whatever the reason, you deserve help. We have a right to be able to live like a human being and do it in a dignified way.”

She added: “If I’m singing in the Chinese restaurant for a penny, at least I’m buying my own food to put on my table, because I don’t want to go back to the food bank if I can help it. If I have something I can sell that people want – I’ll do it.”

Lastly, Fergison also shared her desires to return to TV - and she’s got her eyes on one reality TV show inparticular. “I would love to work in another soap,” she said. “I would love to go on I’m A Celeb. Bring it on, bring it on.”

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