Strictly Come Dancing star Debbie McGee, 60, admitted she felt “anxious” after her husband of 28 years Paul Daniels died just weeks after being diagnosed with a brain tumour aged 78. The former magician’s assistant said her heart break left her not wanting to get out of bed and made her fear more bad news. She told the Daily Mail: “I didn’t want to get out of bed. I couldn’t make a cup of tea. I got anxious, in a way I have never been anxious before.
I was having moments where I wasn’t looking forward to the future.
Debbie McGee
“I started to worry about everyone around me getting ill, dying - I was having moments where I wasn’t looking forward to the future.”
Not long before Paul’s death, Debbie also lost her father.
Her nephew was also diagnosed with cancer and her niece’s husband died after suffering with a brain tumour.
She added: “Suddenly, I started to think ‘What if my mum got cancer? What if I got ill?’
“You start worrying about what might happen. Catastrophising, really.”
Debbie added there were times in which she “wasn’t looking forward to the future, which I never had before.”
Debbie McGee: Strictly star feared more people would die following the death of Paul Daniels (Image: GETTY•WENN)
Debbie McGee: Strictly star lost her husband Paul Daniels in 2016 (Image: GETTY)
The aftermath of Paul’s death also saw her lose a worrying amount of weight.
She continued: “I went down to seven stone. I looked anorexic — my face was gaunt, my boobs went.”
After Paul’s death, Debbie signed up for Strictly Come Dancing and made it through to the final with Giovanni.
Despite the pair’s impressive efforts, the dancing duo missed out on the Glitterball trophy to Joe McFadden and Katya Jones.
During her stint on the show, Debbie told
