It’s nearly six years since we lost one of the greatest British comedy writers of all time.
Carolien Aherne passed away on July 2, 2016 after a long struggle with cancer throughout her life.
Her sudden passing alone in her bungalow in Timperley, Cheshire shocked the nation.
Caroline co-created and starred in iconic BBC sitcom The Royle Family with close friend Craig Cash – playing Denise Royle and her husband David respectively.
READ MORE: Caroline Aherne’s extraordinary life – ‘genius’ IQ, violent marriage and Royle Family fight
(Image: BBC)
On top of that, her comments and thoughts were boomed into the homes of the nation on a weekly basis when she served as the original narrator for Channel 4’s hit show Gogglebox.
Her final diagnosis – which was terminal – was kept hidden at her request, leaving co-stars and fans devastated when the sad news broke in the summer of 2016.
Early diagnosis leads to lifelong battle
(Image: BBC)
As a baby, Caroline had a rare cancer of the retina, retinoblastoma, which robbed her of most of her sight in one eye.
She was later diagnosed and successfully treated for bladder cancer before being diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014.
After another battle, she went into remission, but tragically passed away after receiving a terminal diagnosis in 2016.
Co-star John Thompson revealed she was in remission when they worked on a show in 2015.
Her hair, beneath her wig, had regrown and she was thin, but despite all this she was on amazing form, the Caroline I knew and loved working with,” he recalled.
Coping via comedy
Confirming her diagnosis at a Macmillian Cancer charity event, she told how she’s struggled to take the news in and relied on her famous humour to get her through treatment.
“When you hear them telling you that you have cancer, it’s true that you really don’t take it in properly, you just don’t think of the questions,” she said.
“So many funny things happen when you’re in there and, looking back, you do have a right laugh with the nurses. Although I was on morphine, so maybe it was just me laughing.
“But that’s a way you can cope with it. If you can separate yourself from it, a sense of humour really, really helps.”
Dying wish to friends
Caroline continued to work, voicing Gogglebox and taking on future jobs. But the cancer returned and two months before her death, Caroline told only a handful of her closest friends and family it was terminal and that she had between three and 12 months left to live.
But the humble star had one final wish – and that was for her friends to keep her terminal diagnosis a secret to avoid any ‘fuss’.
“She got in touch and made it clear she knew she was going to die,” a heartbroken friend shared at the time.
“She asked everyone to keep it quiet because she didn’t want any fuss and everyone respected her wishes.
“Most of the people who knew weren’t showbiz friends, but people who had known her all her life.”
It’s thought that the fiercely-private star Caroline kept her deteriorating condition from everyone before taking a turn for the worse.
She didn’t even leave a will, with doting mum Maureen inheriting her £500,000 estate.
Gogglebox instruction
(Image: BBC)
Before publicly revealing she was battling lung cancer in 2014 at the Macmillan Cancer Improvement Partnership, Caroline confided in her writing partner Craig Cash with a heartbreaking wish.
Caroline was the voiceover on Gogglebox from the very start, introducing the families with her dulcet tones and bringing a warming feeling to the Channel 4 show.
Not wanting to let down the viewers when she was unwell, brave Caroline asked Craig if he would take her place when she was unwell.
“In November 2013, when she was gravely ill with cancer, Caroline asked if I’d narrate Gogglebox when she wasn’t up to it,” he told Radio Times.
“Of course, I said yes; it was a very sad time and I wanted to do right by her and by the programme.
“Caroline was well and then unwell, well and unwell, so I filled in whenever she needed me to.
Caroline continued as the Gogglebox voiceover, with Craig continuing to stand in for his friend whenever she needed.
He is now the narrator on a full-time basis.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
