\n
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>\nDame Sheila Hancock has said she\u2019s been overwhelmed by loneliness and feelings of depression following the death of her husband John Thaw. <\/p>\n
The 92-year-old actor, who\u2019s known for her role as Barbara Owen in EastEnders<\/em>, married the Inspector Morse<\/em> star in 1973. Thaw died from throat cancer 29 years later, aged 60. <\/p>\nHancock said that although her friends and family have provided her \u201cgreat comfort\u201d in the 23 years since Thaw\u2019s death, she\u2019s still suffering the \u201cgaping loss\u201d of her husband. <\/p>\n
\u201cWho is there now to wipe my tears and make me laugh?\u201d she wrote in Prospect<\/em> magazine. <\/p>\nHancock said she still speaks to Thaw while watching the Channel 4 news each day. \u201cBut our imagined rant about politicians and human idiocy has grown fainter over the years,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
The actor said her loneliness has been \u201cterribly difficult\u201d to handle, adding she sometimes wakes up feeling \u201coverwhelmed at the thought of a solitary day ahead.\u201d <\/p>\n
She wrote: \u201cThe easiest thing is to turn over and stay in bed, but an effort must be made when one least feels like it, to get up and be active, or one descends even deeper into the Slough of Despond.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Sheila Hancock has said she’s overwhelmed with loneliness after the death of her husband John Thaw (Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nHancock revealed she\u2019d considered getting a cat to keep her company but worried about the fact that the pet could outlive her. <\/p>\n
According to Age UK, nearly a million older people in the UK are often lonely, with some left struggling to use their voice because they haven\u2019t spoken to anyone for so long. <\/p>\n
Hancock rose to fame following her 1966 Broadway debut in Entertaining Mr Sloane<\/em>, which earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Play. <\/p>\nShe went on to star in the comedy films Carry on Cleo<\/em>, The Wildcats of St Trinian\u2019s<\/em>, and Three Men and a Little Lady<\/em>, <\/em>as well as further stage shows, including Cabaret<\/em>, Annie<\/em> and Sister Act<\/em>. <\/p>\nThe Olivier winner met Thaw in 1969 when they co-starred in the West End play So What About Love?<\/em> They married in 1973, two years after the death of Hancock\u2019s first husband, actor Alec Ross.<\/p>\nAge UK\u2019s free national telephone services can be a lifeline for those who feel as though they have no one else to turn to. For more information about the Charity\u2019s Information & Advice Line, Telephone Friendship Service and The Silver Line Helpline, as well as what\u2019s available at local Age UKs, visit: <\/em>ageuk.org.uk\/loneliness\/<\/em>, and to do your bit in tackling loneliness by becoming a volunteer, visit: <\/em>ageuk.org.uk\/friend<\/em>.<\/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 Dame Sheila Hancock has said she\u2019s been overwhelmed by loneliness and feelings of depression following the death of her husband John Thaw. The 92-year-old actor, who\u2019s known for her role as Barbara Owen in EastEnders, married the Inspector Morse star in 1973. Thaw died from throat cancer 29 years later, aged 60. Hancock said that although her friends and family have provided her \u201cgreat comfort\u201d in the 23 years since Thaw\u2019s death, she\u2019s still suffering the \u201cgaping loss\u201d of her husband. \u201cWho is there now to wipe my tears and make me laugh?\u201d she wrote in Prospect magazine. Hancock said she still speaks to Thaw while watching the Channel 4 news each day. \u201cBut our imagined rant about politicians and human idiocy has grown fainter over the years,\u201d she said. The actor said her loneliness has been \u201cterribly difficult\u201d to handle, adding she sometimes wakes up feeling \u201coverwhelmed at the thought of a solitary day ahead.\u201d She wrote: \u201cThe easiest thing is to turn over and stay in bed, but an effort must be made when one least fe…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5610,"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\/5609"}],"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=5609"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5609\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5610"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}