REMEMBERING SAMANTHA
Who was Warwick Davis’ wife, Samantha?
The couple suffered a huge loss in 1991
WARWICK Davis is known and adored by film fans around the world, thanks to his impressive career.
His wife, Samantha, passed away on March 24, 2024.
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Who was Samantha Davis?
Samantha Davis was born Samantha D. Burroughs on January 30, 1971.
She was an actress known for her roles in Through the Dragon's Eye, ShortFellas and Honky Sausages.
Samantha had achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes disproportionate dwarfism.
The actress was married to fellow actor Warwick Davis, who has SED (spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita), a rare disorder of bone growth that also results in dwarfism.
Samantha was struck down by sepsis in 2019.
Warwick exclusively told The Sun that her health dramatically declined ahead of a family caravan holiday.
She'd put it down to over-exerting herself while preparing for the trip, but when her symptoms went from itchiness and exhaustion to being unable to stand, Warwick called an out-of-hours doctor.
He recalled: “By now, Sam was feeling absolutely terrible.
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“She was becoming drowsy, weak and hadn’t been to the toilet in over 24 hours.
“Fortunately for us, our doctor recognised Sam’s symptoms and told us to head to A&E immediately with a suspected case of sepsis.”
Warwick Davis wife's near fatal Sepsis battle
The infection causes the body’s immune system to go into overdrive and attack tissues and organs, which can be lethal and lead to amputations.
Tragically in April 2024, it was announced that Samantha had passed away at the age of 53 on March 24.
Warwick released a statement in tribute to his late wife.
He said: "Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family. I miss her hugs.
"She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life she had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes."
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When did Warwick and Samantha get married?
Samantha met Warwick when she was an extra on the set of his film Willow in 1988.
They dated for four years before deciding to get hitched.
The couple got married in June 1991 at Yaxley Church, Cambridgeshire, in front of family and friends.
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Do Warwick and Samantha have children?
Samantha and Warwick have two children.
Their daughter Annabelle was born in 1997 and is an actress.
She played Sasha Bellman in the CBBC show The Dumping Ground from 2015-2022.
Annabelle also starred as Lacey Lloyd in Hollyoaks.
Her character exited in October 2023, but made a brief return in January 2024.
Son Harrison was born in 2003.
Samantha's struggles
- Samantha and Warwick lost their baby Lloyd just nine days after he was born in 1991 after inheriting dwarfism from both his parents caused complications.
- The couple lost a second child when Samantha miscarried at 20 weeks in 1993, with the couple naming the baby George.
- Samantha suffered another two miscarriages before giving birth to Annabelle and Harrison.
- The actress underwent numerous surgeries in her lifetime due to her achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes disproportionate dwarfism.
- In 2019, she was raced to hospital after complications following decompression surgery on her spine.
- Samantha had contracted life-threatening sepsis and Warwick was preparing himself to say 'goodbye'.
- The infection causes the body’s immune system to go into overdrive and attack tissues and organs, which can be lethal and lead to amputations.
- Sam survived but had it not been for her medical team acting so quickly, she could have lost fingers, toes or limbs.
- After being discharged, Warwick 'played doctor' for three months - mixing vials of antibiotics, loading them into syringes and carefully feeding them into Sam’s heart through a drip.
- In March 2024, it was announced Samantha had sadly passed away.
He has also turned to acting, voicing characters in kids' show Moley, and appearing in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
The pair said of their mum: "Mum is our best friend and we're honoured to have received a love like hers.
"Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives."
Before their two children were born, Warwick and Sammy tragically lost two sons.
Their first son, Lloyd, was born in 1991, with both of his parents' conditions.
Sadly, his lungs were too small to support normal function and he died at just nine days old.
They also lost another son, George, when Samantha was 19 weeks pregnant and suffered two miscarriages before welcoming Annabelle and Harrison.