Actress Leah Bracknell Thanks ALL For £50K Donation & Support Towards Her Cancer Treatment

Emmerdale cast ALL Donated To Help Leah Bracknell raise £50K for Cancer Treatment
Leah Bracknell Thanks Fans After £50K Target For Lung Cancer Treatment Is Met

Former Emmerdale actress Leah Bracknell has expressed gratitude to all, thanked fans for raising £50,000 following her lung cancer diagnosis.

Bracknell, who played Zoe Tate in the ITV soap from 1989 to 2005, shared on a Facebook page that she was diagnosed of lung cancer five weeks ago.

The donations, made on a fundraising website, will enable her to travel to Germany for "cutting edge" treatment.

Leah Bracknell

The actress, whose real name is Alison and who is known to her family as Ali, said: " I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for all the donations, the messages of encouragement, and for sharing the campaign.

"I feel extremely blessed. We did not expect to raise anywhere near that amount, and certainly not in such a short space of time."

She said in a statement: "I really did not expect or feel deserving of such interest and kindness."

More than 2,500 contributions have been made to the site in five days, leading to the £50,000 target being met. The appeal currently stands at £55,000.

'Strong and positive'

The 52-year-old said the campaign would continue, with decisions made at a later stage on how the money would be spent, depending on how she responds to the treatment.

"We pledge that any surplus donations will be given to other campaigns/charities to help those facing the same struggle," said Bracknell. "Right now, I feel strong, positive and (am) looking forward to the future."

The mother-of-two has been working as a yoga instructor in recent years and had been about to start rehearsing for a new play, a comedy, when she was diagnosed with stage four cancer.

Her partner Jez Hughes has said the couple want to try treatments at a clinic in Germany, which "aren't yet available on the NHS outside of clinical trials and are very expensive".

Earlier, Bracknell partner Jez Hughes set up a fundraising page to help undergo treatment in Germany

Leah Bracknell

She went on: "However, the bad news is that I have been diagnosed with lung cancer, stage 4. In their opinion, that means it's terminal, not curable, not operable.

"A fairly brutal and bleak diagnosis but one I am determined to challenge and see from the perspective of 'a glass half full', going against a lifetime of pessimism, negativity and fear!!!!


"By the way, please imagine me writing this and speaking in quite an upbeat and cheerful voice. Do NOT imagine me sitting here writing through a veil of tears. I am not. Or feeling sorry for myself. I am not (yet)."