Whoopi Goldberg has revealed she was close to death earlier this year after battling pneumonia and septic shock.
The 63-year-old Sister Act star has been absent from the US version of Loose Women for the last month, and has now explained why.
On Friday’s edition of The View, Whoopi told viewers that she came “very close to leaving the Earth” after contracting pneumonia in both lungs.
Speaking in a video she said: “Hey, yes it’s me. I am here. I am up and moving around. Not as fast as I’d like to be but I am OK, I’m not dead.
“So here’s what happened. I had pneumonia, and I was septic. Pneumonia in both lungs which meant there was fluid, and there was all kinds of stuff going on. And yes, I came very, very close to leaving the Earth. Good news, I didn’t.”
The Colour Purple star then went on to thank her fans for sending “good wishes” throughout her health battle, and said that even people who “are not huge fans” of her have been wishing her well.
She added: “Thank you for all of your good wishes. All of the wonderful things that people have been saying. Even people who are not huge fans of mine, have actually said nice things about me. We all know that’s going to change when I get back, but for right now it’s brilliant.”
Whoopi also hinted she would go into more detail about her struggle when she returns to the talk show.
Speaking to her co-hosts she said: “And ladies, I cannot wait to see y’all. This has been interesting and I’ll tell you about it when we’re all at the table. To everybody, see you soon.”
Get well soon Whoopi.