Whittaker: 'I fainted over cancer news'

Coronation Street star Sally Whittaker has said that she fainted when she received her breast cancer diagnosis.

The actress had expected to get the all-clear when she attended a hospital appointment for biopsy test results with husband Tim.

Speaking to Hello magazine, Whittaker explained: "I was so confident that Tim and I skipped in discussing where we would go for a drink afterwards.

"My consultant Lester Barr is such a gentle man that I couldn't read on his face what the result was."

She continued: "Lester sat me down and then said 'I'm very sorry to tell you that we've got the biopsy back and you've got breast cancer'. The next thing I remember I was lying on a bed. I'd fainted and Tim and Lester had picked me up."

Whittaker received her diagnosis last year just days after hearing that her Weatherfield character Sally Webster was to battle the disease. She is now thought to be on the road to recovery and will soon return to work.