Coronation Street actress Lisa George has been diagnosed with a genetic eye condition that could leave her blind, she has revealed.
The much-loved actress, who has played seamstress Beth Sutherland in the ITV soap for 12 years, has told how she was diagnosed with NAION disease (non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy) which causes a sudden loss of vision in one eye.
In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, Lisa says she now fears her disability means she will never be able to work in acting again after suffering two separate incidents which left her visually impaired in both eyes.
Corrie’s bosses are so concerned about her eyesight that they have even taken steps to help her, including printing her scripts in large fonts, arranging transport when she was unable to drive for six months, and even changing some of her scenes to accommodate her. poor vision.
“I always think there are people much worse than you, and I’m grateful that I can still see, but we don’t know what could happen in the future.”
Lisa photographed in the hospital
Lisa George (pictured, at the Pride of Britain Awards in 2023) told MailOnline how she was diagnosed with the condition NAION, which causes a sudden loss of vision in one eye.
The beloved actress played seamstress Beth Sutherland (right) in the ITV soap for 12 years.
Lisa suffered her first eye “incident” in 2016 when the heavy knot at the end of a piece of rope caught her attention while she was gardening.
A few days later, the vision in his right eye completely disappeared and he ended up scraping the side of his car while driving down a narrow country road.
He was later told that he had lost some sight in the lower part of his right eye and would sadly never regain it.
Over the next six years, Lisa visited various ophthalmologists, both privately and within the NHS, as she desperately tried to figure out what was going on with that right eye.
She said: “Thankfully my left eye was fine with 20/20 vision and the only thing I had trouble with after that first incident was being able to read.”
“Corrie was great, they printed my scripts in a larger font to make it easier, but I didn’t get any explanation about what had happened. They did scans and put dye in my eyeball, but the doctors were divided as to whether It was the trauma of the rope or something else that had caused the bleeding in the back of my eye.
But things took a turn for the worse in the summer of 2022 when, while driving home after celebrating former Corrie co-star Katie McGlynn’s 29th birthday, Lisa suffered a second incident, this time to her left eye.
She said: “I had spent a lovely evening with Katie and was driving home on the M6 when my left eye got really funny.” She couldn’t tell if the trucks in front of her were merging into one, it was very scary. I made it home and returned to the ER the next morning.
“I ended up staying there for a week, which was horrible. It was one of the worst experiences of my life.
‘I had a CT scan on my head, two punctures in the wood and they wouldn’t let me take my medication for my diabetes, which made me feel very bad.
“No one seemed to have any idea what had happened, they just said ‘you have clusters of nerves’ and after a week they sent me home and told me to take aspirin for the pain.”
Lisa (pictured, at the British Soap Awards in 2017) suffered her first eye “incident” in 2016 when the heavy knot at the end of a piece of rope caught her eye in her right eye while gardening.
Lisa was later told that she had lost some sight in the bottom of her right eye and would unfortunately never get it back (pictured, as her character Beth Sutherland).
Lisa saw another NHS ophthalmologist at her local hospital, who confirmed that although her central vision was fine, the peripheral vision in her left eye had completely disappeared.
That’s when he first heard about the condition NAION: non-arthritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy.
But with very little NHS funding, he told her to go private.
She said: “Thankfully I was able to speak privately, but there are a lot of people still not getting answers.” In the end I ended up at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London and was seen by a neuro-ophthalmologist.’
While attending appointments and undergoing more tests, Lisa was unable to drive for six months.
His driving license was revoked in October 2022.
Corrie’s bosses couldn’t be more understanding and arranged transportation to get her to and from work.
She said: “Corrie was brilliant and said don’t worry, we’ll help you with anything you need.” My biggest concern was night feedings.
“I had a hard time seeing the curb during one session, but everyone was really helpful, making sure I was okay. You have to deal with it the best way you can.
‘On another occasion, as I have no vision in the periphery of my left eye, I was working on a scene and had to go down the false stairs but I couldn’t see.
“I asked the director if it was okay to change the direction of the scene because I was having a real problem with the stairs, he was great and we changed it. They have been very supportive of me making these small adjustments.
Lisa’s character Beth originally came to Coronation Street as Stee McDonald’s love interest, but soon formed a romance with Kirk Sutherland (left).
But I’ll still miss a curb and if it’s dark I’ll trip over a wire! I do it at home all the time, bumping into different things.
‘The worst thing is when I’m tired. And when I wake up in the morning, it takes me a little while to get proper vision.’
It was during a visit to the Royal Theater Exchange in Manchester two months ago that the enormity of her acting career away from Corrie really hit her and she burst into tears.
She said: “I had gone to the theater to see a production of Romeo and Juliet, at the end of the show the whole stage went dark.”
‘All the actors came off the stage in the dark. I walked out of there and thought, ‘I don’t think I’ll be able to work on stage again,’ because there’s no way I could see if I had to get off stage in the dark.
‘Panic and fear came over me and I became very angry. Obviously, I’m sure they put measures in place for visually impaired actors, but it was a real fear and it really affected me a lot, how am I going to navigate the industry in the future?
‘It really hit me. I’m worried about things like that.’
Lisa was able to get back on the road mid-last year and now has a medical driver’s license.
But it took until last November to finally be diagnosed with NAION.
She said: “There are only 11 per cent of people in the UK who suffer from it.” It is not a heart attack or a stroke, it is an intermediate point between the two.
‘My doctor was very clear with me. He said he would never fully regain his sight. The damage was already done and I had to live with it.
“When it first happened I was so petrified, but I can’t worry about what might or might not happen, it’s no way to live.” I just have to keep going.
‘I have accepted what has happened. I already have my glasses and now I also have my varifocal glasses for driving.’
Lisa has been helped by a close friend, Paralympic athlete Libby Clegg, who is registered blind.
The couple met when they participated in Dancing on Ice in 2020.
She said: ‘She’s been really inspiring. I called her because she was very upset and she told me: “You just have to learn to adapt to things.” She was just wonderful. She introduced me to the visually impaired charity she works for.
Despite everything that has happened in recent years, Lisa feels positive about the future.
She said: ‘I’ve gone through the menopause, I’m using a sensor so I can monitor my sugar levels and keep my diabetes under control and I’ve had a complete overhaul of my diet. I have always eaten very healthy but with everything that was happening to my eyes and my Diabetes I went to see a nutritionist.
‘I have eliminated many things from my diet and I am much lighter than last year. I love the weight I have now. I went out on Friday and I was wearing a velvet suit that was a size 10. I haven’t worn a size 10 since I was 28!
‘I feel better than I have in a long time, even though I have all these health problems. I’m just grateful that I still have my sight.’