Kerry, 45, was watching her eldest daughter Molly, 24, in a new play when she started to feel unwell

Jasmine Allday Assistant TV and Showbiz Editor

05:00, 14 Apr 2026

Kerry was rushed to hospital(Image: kerrykatona7/Instagram)

Kerry Katona has told how she feared she was having a stroke when she was rushed to hospital in an ambulance on a family day out.

Kerry, 45, was watching her eldest daughter Molly, 24, in a new play when she started to feel unwell. She realised she could not smile properly – a major tell-tale sign of a stroke.

Kerry, who was with her daughter Heidi, 19, and partner Paolo Margaglione at the time, said: “As the day went on, I didn’t feel well. I went to the toilet and noticed my face wasn’t right.

“Heidi was like, ‘Mum, what’s wrong with your face?’ I started panicking. I discreetly left, went to my hotel and asked to see a doctor. I told the staff, ‘Something’s not right’.”

The former Atomic Kitten star was told a doctor was not available for four hours, so the mum-of-five took a taxi to St Thomas’ Hospital in London.

She said: “I got there and they said, ‘We’re treating this as a stroke,’ so they blue-lit me in an ambulance to King’s College Hospital. They were shining lights in my eyes while my face and speech were getting worse. An hour ago I was watching Molly in a play, now I’m being treated for a stroke. It shows how quickly things can change.”

Kerry was treated for a suspected stroke(Image: kerrykatona7/Instagram)

Fearing she might never speak to them again, Kerry, messaged all of her children – Molly, Lilly, 23, Heidi, Max, 18, and 12-year-old Dylan-Jorge. She said: “I told them I loved them. I’ve never been so scared.”

After the April 2 incident, Kerry was given tests and told that delayed stress was causing the changes in her speech and face. She said: “A stroke was ruled out. Instead, CT scans showed part of my brain is broken and can’t send signals to my face due to stress. It can also happen when you’re feeling content. It’s like delayed stress hitting you suddenly, because you feel at peace.

“Now and then, I get a shooting pain in my head. I notice my speech, even though I think I’m saying something properly in my head, it doesn’t sound right out loud.”

Kerry, who went to Marbella on holiday last week, has suffered a string of health-related issues in the past year, including two miscarriages. In January, she had severe stomach pain and was diagnosed with colitis – a chronic illness that causes inflammation of the rectum and colon.

Read the full interview in New magazine, out today.

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