Samia Longchambon has sent a heartbreaking message to mums who’ve suffered baby tragedies like her Coronation Street character Maria Connor.
On Wednesday night (January 29), Maria was devastated to learn she had miscarried her unborn baby.
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Viewers were gutted to discover the baby hadn’t survived after pregnant Maria contracted measles from Daniel Osbourne’s sick baby Bertie.
Tonight’s Corrie is heartbreaking for Maria but I know it will be close to so many people’s hearts too.
After feeling dizzy and realising she’d been bleeding, she rushed to hospital for a baby scan to check everything was okay.
But in gut-wrenching scenes, the sonographer told Maria there was no heartbeat.
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The tragic news bought back terrible memories of when Maria lost another baby 12 years ago.
Maria was devastated in 2008 when she gave birth to a stillborn baby on the ITV soap.
She sobbed: “I lost a baby before you know, 12 years ago. I was 30 weeks pregnant and his heart just stopped beating.
“And I had to give birth to him knowing he was dead.”
Tonight’s @itvcorrie is heartbreaking for #maria but I know it will be close to so many people’s hearts too. Including mine. For anyone affected by the story please visit https://t.co/KbzFR8u2v3 #miscarriage 💔🙏
— Samia Longchambon (@realsamia) January 29, 2020
During the extremely sad double episode, actress Samia – who has played Maria since 2000 – send a message of solidarity to anyone watching who had suffered a similar tragedy to her character.
Posting on her official Twitter account, she told her 414,200 followers: “Tonight’s @itvcorrie is heartbreaking for Maria but I know it will be close to so many people’s hearts too. Including mine.
“For anyone affected by the story please visit itv.com/advice/marias- #miscarriage.”
The actress shared a link to Sands, a charity that supports anyone who has been affected by the death of a baby, whether your baby died recently or long ago.
Fans responded to Samia’s message in droves, with one typing: “Heartbreaking, can’t imagine the pain of losing a child. Such an important issue to be tackled on Corrie. I know you’ll do it justice Samia.”
Another said: “This was an important storyline! Your performance was wonderful! This was a great way to educate people about getting vaccinations!”
A third added: “I remember watching your performance 12 years ago when I’d just had my baby, it was heartbreaking. Can’t imagine what it’s like for any parents to go through miscarriage.”
In real life, 37-year-old Samia has a daughter Freya, 10, with her ex-husband Matt Smith, and son Yves, four, with current husband Sylvain of Dancing on Ice fame.
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