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From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nSamatha Womack has opened up about her financial struggles after turning down acting work because of her treatment for breast cancer.<\/p>\n
Womack, 52, who is best known for playing Ronnie Mitchell in <\/em>EastEnders<\/em> <\/em>from 2007 to 2017, underwent a year-and-a-half of treatment for Grade 3 invasive duct carcinoma, a fast-spreading type of cancer where the cancer cells look very different from normal breast cells, and tend to grow more quickly. <\/p>\nShe announced her diagnosis in 2022 and told fans she was cancer free in December that year.<\/p>\n
In a new interview with The Mirror,<\/em> Womack explained that she was in a cycle of saying \u201cno\u201d to jobs, and that bank account was \u201ccreaking\u201d as a result.<\/p>\n\u201cAfter my year-and-a-half of treatment, I started turning down a lot of stuff \u2013 and I didn\u2019t have the bank balance to match that confidence, trust me,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut there was empowerment in that because I thought, \u2018OK, I need to go through this, spend time with myself and figure out stuff that I\u2019ve never figured out \u2013 maybe stuff I\u2019ve buried under a rug.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Womack admitted she had \u201clow self-esteem\u201d when considering different roles, and she decided to opt for more gentle parts instead.<\/p>\n
\u201cSoaps pay very, very well, but the reality of being self-employed means that, yes, you get paid for the jobs you do, but for the six months of the year you don\u2019t work, you don\u2019t get paid,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve never been a wealthy person. I\u2019ve gone from job to job, always thinking, \u2018Better say yes because no one\u2019s going to want me if I don\u2019t.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
She continued: \u201cI had very low self-esteem. Going back to work after my treatment felt very hard. I couldn\u2019t quite step back into that neurotic, zany energy as easily. I was physically capable, but I wasn\u2019t emotionally capable. I was picking things that felt gentle to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Womack pictured in 2024 (Getty)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nOne of those jobs was a guest role in the cosy crime series The Marlow Murder Club<\/em>, which she said felt like a safe space and involved \u201ca lovely bunch of women\u201d. <\/p>\nWomack was diagnosed with breast cancer after seeking out a private check-up, driven by a gut feeling that she needed to be seen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt perfectly fine. There was no discolouration of skin, dimpling, irritation,\u201d she said. \u201cI knew the NHS calls people in at 50, but I just had this thought of, \u2018I need to go and get checked before then.\u2019 I was just on the cusp of catching it too late and the speed with which I had to process information was unbearable. I sometimes think, \u2018What if I hadn\u2019t gone to that appointment?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The actor is mother to Benjamin, 24, and Lili-Rose, 20, whom she shares with her ex-husband Mark Womack. Her current partner, Oliver Farnworth, 42, currently splits his time between Spain and the UK, where he plays John Sugden in the ITV soap Emmerdale<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Samatha Womack pictured in 2015 (Getty)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWomack explained that her husband\u2019s filming schedule, which means he comes home for two or three days at a time before leaving again, has worked well for her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s been quite good for me, having some space on my own. It\u2019s been rare in my life that I\u2019ve been confident enough to do that, so it\u2019s been helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n
Womack added that her experience has changed her outlook on life, saying: \u201cI feel so much more enlightened. I know myself better, I feel humbler, I feel calmer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before starting her acting career in the Nineties, Womack represented the UK at Eurovision<\/em> in 1991 under her maiden name, Samantha Janus, and has gone on to have screen roles in the Kingsman film series and Sky\u2019s comedy series Mount Pleasant<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more Samatha Womack has opened up about her financial struggles after turning down acting work because of her treatment for breast cancer. Womack, 52, who is best known for playing Ronnie Mitchell in EastEnders from 2007 to 2017, underwent a year-and-a-half of treatment for Grade 3 invasive duct carcinoma, a fast-spreading type of cancer where the cancer cells look very different from normal breast cells, and tend to grow more quickly. She announced her diagnosis in 2022 and told fans she was cancer free in December that year. In a new interview with The Mirror, Womack explained that she was in a cycle of saying \u201cno\u201d to jobs, and that bank account was \u201ccreaking\u201d as a result. \u201cAfter my year-and-a-half of treatment, I started turning down a lot of stuff \u2013 and I didn\u2019t have the bank balance to match that confidence, trust me,\u201d she said. \u201cBut there was empowerment in that because I thought, \u2018OK, I need to go through this, spend time with myself and figure out stuff that I\u2019ve never figured out \u2013 maybe stuff I\u2019ve buried under a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2665,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2664"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2664"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2664\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2665"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}