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Charlotte Church praises 'still joyful' Dad following life-threatening illness

Charlotte Church: My Family and Me is airing on Thursday

October 15, 2019
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Charlotte Church has heaped praise on her stepfather James, commending him for sharing the news that he is suffering from a life-threatening illness. The Welsh singer and her family are set to appear in Channel 4 documentary Charlotte Church: My Family and Me and ahead of the programme airing on Thursday, the 33-year-old tweeted: "I would first like to say that what is so amazing and beautiful to witness with my Dad, is that he is still joyful and living life to the fullest. He has a positive energy and acceptance that is so inspirational."

Charlotte was forced to speak out on Twitter after feeling that her family's news was "sensationalised" in the press. The actress said she was "really disappointed" with the way her Dad's diagnosis was covered in the media, tweeting: "He has been brave enough to share his experience, being open and therefore making himself vulnerable and they've shamelessly sensationalised it."

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Charlotte Church: My Family and Me is airing on Thursday

She added: "It makes me feel very upset to see his story being reduced to 'months he has left'. Its highly insensitive, ethically bankrupt and not what we as a family have talked about in the programme. I would ask that you please watch the programme yourselves to more fully understand that actually my parents are courageous, gorgeous human beings. I love them, flaws and all, to the core of my being which is why it's so frustrating to see our story being twisted to the negative and exploited like this."

MORE: Charlotte Church under investigation amid claims she's illegally running school classes at home

Last week, Charlotte revealed that her stepdad James, 53, suffers from AL amyloidosis - which is similar to blood cancer. "It's absolutely terrifying the idea of not having him around. I rely on him for so much, he's my buddy, my absolute best friend and has been for years," she shared.

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Discussing the heartbreaking diagnosis himself, James explained: "Time is not on my side. The disease I have is very rare, only one in eight million people have it. It's called AL amyloidosis. The worst scenario is I could only have six months, so I'm in a horrible position."

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