Warwick Davis kept vigil at his wife Samantha’s hospital bedside as she fought for her life against sepsis five years before her death aged 53.
The couple, who had been together for nearly 30 years, had been through struggles before including losing two children, but this was something Warwick was not prepared for.
Their family had been gearing up for a caravan holiday in 2019 when Samantha suddenly fell ill with a mystery condition, something she put down to stress.
However, within days she was at death’s door with doctors telling her terrified husband that she had sepsis, a rare condition which sees the body’s immune system attack its own organs and tissues.
The thought of losing his ‘soul mate’ tortured Warwick and despite her battling hard to recover, he later admitted they still felt its effects as they refused to ‘take life for granted’ anymore.
Samantha Davis seen holding her daughter Annabelle in hospital as she battled sepsis in 2019. She would later make a full recovery
Warwick Davis pictured with his wife Samantha and their children Annabelle and Harrison at the premiere of TV series Willow in November 2022
Warwick and Samantha Davis pictured at their wedding in Yaxley, Cambridgeshire, in 1991
It was a motto the couple lived by, enjoying another five years of bliss with each other before Samantha tragically passed away at the age of 53 last month.
In a touching statement released on Wednesday, Warwick said his late wife’s passing had ‘left a huge hole in our lives’ and paid tribute to his ‘favourite human’.
He described Sammy, as he called her, as his ‘most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career’.
He said he felt like he could achieve anything with his wife by his side and that it felt like he had a ‘superpower’.
‘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,’ Warwick said in a statement given to the BBC.
In 2022 Warwick had opened up about Samantha’s health issues, including her hard fought battle with sepsis which left her on the brink of death before making a remarkable recovery.
He revealed the mother-of-two had fallen ill while preparing for a family caravan holiday in 2019.
Initially she had a sensation of itchiness and exhaustion, but concern grew when she was unable to stand up.
Warwick called an out of hours doctor who told them to immediately go to their nearest A&E as they were worried she might have sepsis.
Samantha Davis (pictured with Warwick), who met her husband on the set of his 1988 film Willow, tragically died aged 53 on March 24
Warwick and Samantha pictured together on a ‘date night’ in October last year
During their 33-year marriage, they had three children – one of whom tragically died shortly after he was born. The couple are pictured in 1996
The illness is caused an infection that causes the body’s immune system to go into overdrive and attack tissues and organs, which can be lethal and lead to amputations.
Nearly 250,000 Brits are diagnosed with sepsis every year, of which 48,000 die and 40 per cent are left with life-altering disabilities and symptoms.
On arrival doctors examined Samantha and quickly became concerned about a scar on her back from a recent spinal surgery that was ‘inflamed with fluid, red, and hot to touch’.
Tests came back showing she had a deadly Streptococcus bacteria and meningitis infection, meaning she needed emergency surgery.
He told The Sun: ‘The next few hours were the longest of my life as I waited on the ward with our children in the empty space left by Sam’s hospital bed. I hoped it would not symbolise a future for us without her.’
The ordeal left Samantha in intensive care with doctors flooding her body with antibiotics in a bid to save her life.
The infection had ‘ravaged every cell in her body’, leaving Samantha extremely weak and her family worried about whether she would pull through.
Warwick continued: ‘Our family gathered by her bedside; although optimistic, we were sort of saying goodbye in case Sam didn’t survive.’
‘It’s so hard to see someone you love more than anything in the world fighting to stay alive without the strength to even roll over in bed.’
Samantha was able to battle through the disease, although it took three months – and the constant companionship of her husband – to nurse her back to full health.
However, while Samantha physically recovered, the illness left its mark on both her and Warwick.
‘I broke down every night thinking that this terrible illness that came out of nowhere might take my soulmate away from me,’ he told The Sun.
‘We never take life for granted now, living each day as if it were our last.
‘I appreciate and cherish every moment that Sam and I spend together.’
It was an ideal they lived by as they enjoyed another five years together before her tragic death on March 24.
The couple’s children (all pictured together) said they were ‘honoured to have received a love like hers’
Warwick and Samantha smile and hold hands in the back of a taxi as they attend the Pride of Britain awards at The Grosvenor House Hotel in October 2014 in London
Samantha and Warwick attending the ITV Palooza! held at The Royal Festival Hall in October, 2018 in London
Davis said his wife’s mobility had become impaired in recent years but shared how she was determined not to let it bring her down.
Their two other children, Annabelle and Harrison, paid tribute to their mother, saying: ‘Her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives’. Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers.’
The couple met on the set of George Lucas’s film Willow and married three years later in 1991.
During their 33-year marriage, they had three children – one of whom tragically died shortly after he was born.
The actor and his wife lost baby son Lloyd just nine days after he was born in 1991 – the year they got married.
Davis said in 2022 that he would not wish the ‘devastating’ experience on anyone and added: ‘You never get over it.’
He and Samantha – who co-founded the charity Little People UK – met when Davis starred as sorcerer Willow Ufgood in the 1988 film named after the character.
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