Fit and healthy star dies, aged 56, after catching the flu

A woman who carved out an entertainment career after multiple TV and radio appearances has died, aged 56, after catching the flu. Kerry Wilson developed cold-like symptoms which deteriorated and she had to be placed into a coma.

She died on January 3, reports StokeOnTrentLive. Kerry rose to fame after becoming the first-ever winner of Bob Says Opportunity Knocks in 1987 at the age of 19.

She went on to appear on The Jonathan Ross Big Talent Show , Talking Telephone Numbers , Who Do You Do? and Summertime Special as well as playing Cheryl Colclough on a BBC radio soap.

Mum Linda said: “She was my best friend. I was only 16 when I had Kerry. What’s tragic is she had a younger brother, just two years different in age. He died in January as well, 30 years ago when he was just 24. I feel absolutely heartbroken that not just one, but both of my children are gone.

“Kerry was very young, very lively. It was very sudden. She’s never been in the hospital in her life; no major health issues or anything like that. But then this new flu came along. It’s been devastating. You just don’t expect it – everyone gets flued up every winter.

“She told me she felt a bit sniffly. As mothers do, I said to her, ‘Why don’t you ring 111?’ By the weekend, she didn’t feel any better so she gave them a call. They made her an appointment with a GP straight away because her oxygen levels were right down. Within 12 hours she was in a coma, placed on a ventilator.

“It was identified as influenza A, which affects your lungs very badly and can give you pneumonia. We thought she was starting to recover, but then she contracted sepsis. A little while later she was gone. It was really rapid and totally unexpected.

“We were with her. Her family were at her side when they switched the machine off. I’ve experienced losing a child before, but I never thought it would happen again. The grief was unreal. There’s a quote I’ve always had in life to all the mothers out there: 'if you think giving birth is painful, giving them back is excruciating'.”

She added: “In the 80s and 90s, Kerry was like a local celebrity. She opened events doing impressions, sometimes as Mrs Thatcher, she was always in the Pantomimes at the Regent, and she did lots of things for Radio Stoke.

“She was a comedian, an impressionist, a singer, and an all-round entertainer. She had a beautiful, beautiful voice. She had a very eclectic career and she did so many amazing things. When she was on TV, it was before the time of Netflix and all of that. So you had the BBC or ITV and that was your lot. Around 15 million people saw how talented she was.

“It seems like a bit of a cliché, but she was a beautiful person inside and out. She made everybody smile. Everybody said how kind she was – kindness was her number one thing. She was very funny and had such a generous nature. She was larger than life, and she always managed to light up a room.”

Linda said: “I’d like to stress to everyone to take their flu vaccines. The hospital said that covid has had it’s day – but this flu is out to get you. Kerry didn’t have the vaccine this year. I pushed her, but she didn’t go out a lot and the last time she had it made her feel unwell, so she decided not to bother. Her friends all went along to the chemist yesterday to get one.”