Lisa Riley broke down in tears on Wednesday’s (15 February) ‘Loose Women’, as she admitted fears about her upcoming surgery to remove her excess skin.
The former ‘Emmerdale’ actress is going under the knife following her incredible six stone weight loss, but revealed to her fellow panellists she has “the ultimate fear that I’m not going to wake up”.
Making her final appearance on the ITV daytime show before her surgery, Lisa became emotional as she talked about it with Andrea McLean, Jane Moore and Anne Diamond.
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Lisa Riley broke down on 'Loose Women'
Rex/ITV/Ken McKay
“I suppose I’m putting a bit of a front on, you girls saw me get upset this morning,” she said.
“I just personally want to thank all the ‘Loose Women’ viewers, and the support I have on social media has been unbelievable and I hope that’s going to get me through the next five weeks, which is going to be desperately hard.”
She continued: “People have judged me and said what they want to say but, excuse the pun, I’ve become thick skinned.
“I’ve got to go into this with my eyes wide open but I’m petrified about it, look I’m shaking, about going under the anaesthetic.”
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Lisa is undergoing surgery to remove excess skin
Rex/ITV/Ken McKay
As she was comforted by her co-stars, Lisa also explained the details of what her surgery entails.
She said: “It’s in two parts with the first part coming up now, which is all the excess skin here [pointing to her stomach] and all the back fat I have, the inside of my thighs and my lady garden as well - that’s going to get tugged, I can’t say that can I! I’m sorry I said that!
“That’s the first part, the second part will be my breasts and my under arms.”
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Lisa has undergone an incredible transformation
Doug Peters/Doug Peters
Lisa lost weight after deciding to cut out alcohol and overhaul her diet, as well as taking regular exercise, including Zumba and yoga classes.
She previously revealed that she was inspired to make lifestyle changes after her father had a cancer scare and was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.
Prior to her realisation, she claimed she was “subconsciously comfort-eating and binge-drinking” to cope with her mother’s death in 2012.
‘Loose Women’ airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV.
12 Stars You'd Forgotten Were 'Loose Women'
Karren Brady(01 of12)
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Long before she was answering to Lord Sugar, The Apprentice star Karren was letting loose on the ITV daytime show.
She was one of the original line-up of ladies, appearing on the first episode in 1999.
And while her stint was short-lived, ending just a year later, Karren returned to the panel for an anniversary special in 2017, along with the rest of the women who appeared on that very first show. (credit:REX)
Kerry Katona(02 of12)
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Back when she was Kerry McFadden (those were the days, eh?), the Atomic Kitten singer appeared as a panelist between 2003 and 2004.
She was only 23 when she joined the show, making her the youngest Loose Woman regular ever, and her sometimes naive outlook on life meant she often clashed with Sherrie Hewson, providing many hilarious moments. (credit:REX)
Nina Wadia(03 of12)
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She's best known for playing the opinionated Zainab Masood in EastEnders, but Nina offered up plenty of opinions of her own when she appeared as a series regular between 2005 and 2006. (credit:REX)
Gillian Taylforth(04 of12)
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Another EastEnder who graced the Loose Women panel was Gillian Taylforth – better known as Walford's Kathy Beale.
The actress enjoyed two stints as a Loose lady, first in 2006 and again in 2008. (credit:REX)
Cilla Black(05 of12)
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While the late Cilla will be remembered for her huge TV hits Blind Date and Surprise Surprise, her last regular TV gig was actually as a Loose Woman.
She appeared first as a guest anchor in 2009 and was invited back as a regular panelist between 2010 and 2011, returning for a final appearance in 2014. (credit:REX)
Sarah Millican(06 of12)
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In our humble opinion, Sarah's tenure as a Loose Woman was simply not long enough.
The comic only appeared as a panelist for less than a year in 2011, before leaving to concentrate on her stand-up career. (credit:REX)
Beverley Callard(07 of12)
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During one of her many breaks from Coronation Street, Beverley (aka Liz McDonald) took up a seat behind the famous desk in 2010. (credit:REX)
Kym Marsh(08 of12)
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While Kym has recently enjoyed a few turns as a guest panellist, many have forgotten her original stint as a regular on the show in 2005, back when she sported an interesting (if that's the right word?) set of hair extensions. (credit:REX)
Claire Sweeney(09 of12)
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The former Brookside actress enjoyed over two years on the panel back in 2003, and later returned for six episodes in 2010, and a further two in 2012. (credit:REX)
Sheree Murphy(10 of12)
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Sheree was a welcome addition to the panel in 2006, after she finished playing Emmerdale's much-loved Tricia Dingle. While she left in 2007, she later returned as a guest panellist for an episode in 2015. (credit:REX)
Claire Richards(11 of12)
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After the departure of many of Loose Women's biggest names in 2013 and 2014, Steps singer Claire made a string of guest appearances. She impressed bosses so much, she was soon promoted to a regular.
However, a massive revamp of the show in the September of 2014 saw her leave the show with no explanation. (credit:REX)
Jenny Powell(12 of12)
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The Wheel Of Fortune assistant was finally given a break from turning around letters on a board in 2004, when she joined the Loose Women panel for a year. (credit:ITV)