BBC Countryfile star ‘cried a lot’ during wedding to soulmate amid cancer battle

Countryfile star Adam Henson wept uncontrollably as he tied the knot with his soulmate Charlie Gilbert weeks after she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

The couple have been together for almost three decades and as well as celebrating their love, they felt like their big day was her final farewell to their love ones after receiving her diagnosis.

They didn’t know how long they had left together and Charlie says tying the knot suddenly became “really important” because she wanted her husband to know she was “committed to him”. Charlie and Adam have been together on and off since their late teens after meeting in sixth form.

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Speaking to the Mirror about their wedding, he said: “We cried a lot. Those vows cemented my emotions and let me say from the heart how I feel about Charlie. The registrar wasn’t aware of our situation and said she’d never had such an emotional couple. For us, it was a way of saying goodbye to everyone.”

She first noticed symptoms of a “bad tummy” over the Christmas period in 2020, but changes to her diet failed to resolve the problem. She eventually sought advice from her GP in February 2021 and had to wait another three weeks for an appointment, by which time she had started sharing concerns with pals.

In his new book, Adam, 57, revealed tests on his spouse at the time showed she wasn’t absorbing food properly, which led to her being prescribed Creon. Told pancreatic cancer was “very unlikely”, she arranged a scan before going about her life for the next five weeks awaiting it’s result.

Charlie, Adam, and their grown-up children, Ella and Alfie were then “lulled into a false sense of security” believing “no news is good news”. However, with Adam working away in Scotland, Charlie received the devastating call. “There was no preamble: it was pancreatic cancer,” she said.

She continued: “I was told the scan showed a 4.5cm growth on my pancreas, located in a difficult position and it was very serious. The GP asked if I had anyone with me at home and apologised that she had to discuss this over the phone. I felt I had been hit with a sledgehammer.

“I knew that this type of cancer had a very low survival rate just five per cent. We also knew of a couple of people who had had it, and their disease had progressed very quickly from diagnosis. I decided not to ring Adam; he was working and what could he do? My mum lives five minutes away, and she and Pete, her partner of many years, came straight over. I honestly don’t know what I would have done without them, but I was in absolute hell. I couldn’t process it, it was too big to take in.”

The couple were later told at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital it was “definitely” cancer, but potentially a neuroendocrine tumour – a rare, slow-growing form of the disease. They learned that only two per cent of pancreatic cancer is neuroendocrine and, even if it was that, operating would prove difficult due to its size and positioning. The alternative was palliative care.

Stunned, and unable to walk due to the shock, Charlie had to be carried down the corridor by Adam before they retreated to their Cotswolds home. It was there Charlie asked the “very important” question about marriage.

Christmas on the Farm: Wintry Tales from a Life Spent Working with Animals by Adam Henson is available from Thursday (October 26).

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk