CELEBRITY WELLBEING How does a mother say goodbye to her children? O

What happens when...

N NEW Year’s Eve 2007, when Kate Greene’s son Reef was in hospital being treated for cancer, she told her husband Singe she would swap places with the toddler in a heartbeat.

The following year, with Reef beating the odds to make a miraculous recovery, Kate found a lump in her breast. By Christmas 2009, she was told she had just 18 months to live, but died less than a month later, leaving a list of 79 things she wanted her family to do – from looking for four-leafed clovers to diving in the Red Sea.

Kate’s story was immortalised in a bestselling book by husband Singe (short for St John), called Mum’s List, which is now a film starring Emilia Fox as Kate.

“It’s every parent’s worst nightmare that your own child will be ill, which is what happened for Kate and Singe when their little boy got cancer,” says the actress, 42. “And then you would say, ‘I would swap places with my child,’ and do anything for them – but the horrible truth for her was that she did swap places and got cancer herself and didn’t survive.

“For me as a mum, it’s incredibly easy to feel the emotions of that...”

Emilia, best known for playing forensic pathologist Dr Nikki Alexander in the BBC’s longrunning series Silent Witness, is a single mum to six-year-old Rose, from a relationship with actor Jeremy Gilley.

“Obviously, Rose is my priority and I make sure that whatever work I’m doing works for her, and that there’s a consistency. That’s what I took from my parents: no matter what work they were doing, my school life and family life and feeling very loved and safe was integral to them, and that’s what I try to give my daughter.”

While filming Mum’s List in Clevedon, Somerset, where Kate lived, the actress was also working on the new series of Silent Witness, which starts on January 2. But weekends meant spending time with Rose. Single mum Emilia Fox tackles the most emotional role of her career in Mum’s List, about a mother-of-two with terminal cancer. She tells how making the film, based on a true story, has moved and inspired her

Of course, the film highlights how emotions. I didn’t want to cry and “So many of those things on the important family love is and to make it obvious I was crying on my list resonated with me,” says Emilia. make the most of those precious behalf.” “It’s a celebration of the very moments you have together. So In real life, Kate didn’t write her ordinary, normal things in life: you definitely a way of dealing with list in one go, but over weeks, with make sure there’s food in the fridge, those emotions was to go home and Post-it notes and texts to Singe, who and know what’s happening with make the most of every moment, then compiled them all. Its contents the afterschool club... and be normal.” ranges from instructions like not “What, for me, is most touching

She describes the role as “a letting the boys smoke, always about the list is the way she wanted huge honour, but also a huge kissing them twice and eating her to remain part of her sons’ lives and responsibility” to do Singe and his favourite orange Club their future. Even though she was boys Reef and Finn proud. biscuits, to more not there physically, she was

And while her co-star Rafe Spall adventurous absolutely omnipresent all through could speak directly to Singe to wishes, including filming.” help portray him, Emilia had to roller-skating Making the film has taught Emilia rely on “Singe taking me through around the the same lesson she got from seeing every scene of the film and telling Natural History two autopsies in preparation for me where Kate was emotionally Museum (which Silent Witness. and physically at, each time...” they’ve ticked off ) “One was an older man before I

“We had a good old chat for a and buying a started in the series and later a couple of hours in a pub and a speed boat. young man in his 20s, which didn’t good old cry when Singe told me seem natural as he was in the prime the story,” she says, “and it of his life. It was very thought-provoking. was so intense that one of What I took away from it, by Singe’s neighbours saw coincidence, was exactly Kate’s us and mistakenly motto: To make the most of every thought he was moment.” breaking up with a It’s been 20 years since Silent girlfriend!” Witness came to our screens, with

Admitting it’s the Emilia joining the cast in 2004. most emotional “I feel very proud of it,” she says. role she’s ever “There aren’t many shows that make played, “particularly it to 20 years and it’s still made with because it’s the same passion. We’ve just shot true”, she says. One the most challenging episode I’ve of the hardest scenes ever worked on. It has Nikki doing to film was where Kate things I’ve never been asked to do says goodbye to her before. It will be a surprise for sons. everyone.”

“If a mother is preparing If Mum’s List and new Silent to say goodbye to her Witness weren’t enough, Emilia is children, how on earth do also starring in new Sky 1 drama you do that? You would Delicious this month, alongside want to carry on kissing Dawn French. them forever... It was a “I love working with Dawn! It was tough couple of days on a real lift to do that – I did it in the the film.” hiatus of Silent Witness, so it was in

Also a tough shoot was the summer in Cornwall. Rose and I where Kate reads her list went to Cornwall and had a holiday to camera. there – it was beautiful!”

“I was very aware that She admits she’s been “lucky” my emotions as Emilia with her work, but believes her didn’t overtake Kate’s greatest achievement by far is being a mum.

“Motherhood is everything – and it’s been the best thing that’s ever happened in my life. It makes me feel more complete – I feel very lucky to have my daughter. ” Mum’s List is in cinemas now. Delicious starts on December 30 on Sky 1 at 9pm.

The new series of Silent Witness starts on January

2 on BBC1. Left, Emilia Fox as Kate Greene with Rafe Spall as Singe in Mum’s List and, right, with William and Matthew Stagg as Kate’s sons Reef and Finn