Soap star Claire King broke down as she opened up about her heartbreak following her best friend Fiona’s tragic death.
In an episode of Channel 5’s In Therapy the 54-year-old was left sobbing after talking about Fiona – who passed away following a brief battle with bladder cancer.
Claire revealed it was the “worst loss I’ve ever experienced” and admitted she’s struggled to talk about it.
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She told counsellor Mandy Saligari: “We were thick as thieves, we did everything together.
“It’s been really hard, I’ve put up a big wall. She was my best friend.
“It’s the worst loss that I’ve ever experienced, and I haven’t dealt with it and haven’t talked about it.”
As the actress started opening up about her past she also went on to talk about her ex-husband’s affair with her former Emmerdale co-star Samantha Giles.
Claire played Kim Tate, and married her co-star Peter Amory, who played her on-screen stepson, Chris Tate, in 1994.
Their marriage lasted for ten years until they split in 2004 after Claire discovered that her husband had been having an affair with Samantha, who played Bernice Blackstock.
She told Mandy: “We’d split up due to his infidelity. It happened in my house, the local pub, workplace.
“Then they split and we thought we’d work it out, then they got together again. Six months later… finished.
“I felt as though it was the end of something but also a failure. And I didn’t want it to be a failure. It was a loss as well. It was a failure of a marriage but the loss of a good friend.
“I really didn’t know it would affect me so badly.”
Claire also revealed that Peter had a problem with gambling and says it placed her in financial jeopardy.
She explained: “He liked a drink but he was also gambling as well. I mean big gambling.
“I knew he always gambled but not in that way. Lose your house money, lose everything money.
“I was £9,000 short of paying my mortgage off and then suddenly, poof. It was just horrible and it was draining.”
Shortly after the split Claire went through a difficult time and struggled to find work which led to her turning to alcohol.
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She said: “I think I was depressed. I was on a very rocky road at the time. It wasn’t a great time and that’s where I went a bit off the rails, drinking too much.
“I thought I was coping but it’s the old adage – it doesn’t help at all. I know I’m not an alcoholic but I do like a drink. I do use it as a crutch and I am aware it’s really bad for feelings and emotions when you’re in a bad place.”