Succession star J. Smith-Cameron underwent emergency appendectomy three weeks before West End play opened: ‘I’m still sort of getting my strength back’

J. Smith-Cameron underwent emergency appendectomy surgery three weeks before making her West End debut in Juno and the Paycock, which just opened last Saturday at the Gielgud Theatre in London.

‘I’m still sort of getting my strength back,’ the 67-year-old Succession alum admitted to The Guardian’s Observer Magazine on Sunday.

‘Yes, it was a big thing, and my husband [of 24 years, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Kenneth Lonergan] couldn’t come because he’s opening a play in New York. But I just feel very lucky…

‘Today is only my second full day back. Everyone has been extremely gracious and understanding and I’d been looking forward to all this for weeks. I was so excited, and then all hell broke loose.’

J. (born Jean Isabel Smith) was in the midst of rehearsals with co-star Mark Rylance and director Matthew Warchus when she realized she ‘could barely straighten up’ due the pain in her abdomen, and she was rushed to St. Mary’s Hospital in Paddington.

The 67-year-old Succession alum admitted to The Guardian’s Observer Magazine on Sunday: ‘I’m still sort of getting my strength back…Today is only my second full day back. Everyone has been extremely gracious and understanding and I’d been looking forward to all this for weeks. I was so excited, and then all hell broke loose’ (pictured April 14)

‘They admitted me straight away, and put me on antibiotics. There were more urgent surgeries than mine, so then I had to wait a day. I came out on a Friday evening, and [the company] didn’t call me; they let me rest until the following Tuesday, and then I did half-days for a while, which was draining, but also good,’ Smith-Cameron recalled.

‘I want to do a whole series about St. Mary’s. They were wonderful. They were rock stars. I sent over a gift for them today because – oh my God – they were so skillful and hardworking, and their work ethic was so aggressive, you know?’

The two-time Emmy nominee made sure to ‘touch wood’ for luck ahead of the play opening: ‘Everything is fine, apart from me being a little behind.’

She added: ‘Yes, it was a big thing, and my husband [of 24 years, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Kenneth Lonergan (L, pictured in 2021)] couldn’t come because he’s opening a play in New York. But I just feel very lucky’

J. (born Jean Isabel Smith) was in the midst of rehearsals with co-star Mark Rylance and director Matthew Warchus when she realized she ‘could barely straighten up’ due the pain in her abdomen, and she was rushed to St. Mary’s Hospital in Paddington (pictured April 19)

Smith-Cameron recalled: ‘They admitted me straight away, and put me on antibiotics. There were more urgent surgeries than mine, so then I had to wait a day…I want to do a whole series about St. Mary’s. They were wonderful. They were rock stars. I sent over a gift for them today because – oh my God – they were so skillful and hardworking, and their work ethic was so aggressive, you know?’ (2022 stock shot)