TV Host Dies From Brain Cancer: Annabel Giles Was 64

Annabel Giles, a British television presenter and actress, died at age 64 after she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. In a statement, Giles’ family said she died peacefully at Martlets Hospice in Hove, England, on Nov. 20. 

Molly and Tedd, her children, honored their mother, who had been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year. “In July, Mum was diagnosed with a Stage 4 Glioblastoma, a fast-growing and highly aggressive malignant brain tumour,” her children wrote.

“In the four months that followed, she displayed remarkable resilience and strength despite undergoing brain surgery and countless radiotherapies. In her final weeks, she was passionate about raising awareness for Glioblastoma, embodying her lifelong commitment to helping others.”

The statement read: “Mum was truly one of a kind, an enigma to those privileged to share her life. True to her nature, she kept spirits high and maintained her quick wit until the very end.” According to Giles’ children, their mother’s “humor and laughter” will inspire them to “live life to the fullest, just as she always did.”

As a secretary in the 80s, she was scouted by Models 1 agency and became an official model for the cosmetics brand Max Factor. Born in Pontypool, Wales, the TV presenter started out in the 90s with ITV shows Razzmatazz and Night Network. In 1995, she performed a one-woman show at the Edinburgh Festival entitled Looking for Mr Giles. The following year, she hosted a show entitled Anyone Can Be A TV Presenter.

It was in 2001 that Giles published her first book, a bestseller titled Birthday Girls, which revolved around six different women on different birthdays, all connected in some way to each other. In 2003, she released the novel Crossing the Paradise Line, about a group of people staying at the same vacation resort when a disaster strikes. The Defrosting of Charlotte Small was Giles’ third novel in 2006, about a woman whose Christmas celebrations are marred by suppressed emotion and disappointment after years of heartbreak.

Having achieved success as a TV presenter and actor, Giles took part in I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! in 2013 alongside Vincent Simone, one of the stars of Strictly Come Dancing. In recent years, Gilbert had been focusing more on her role as a counselor and psychotherapist at her own practice in place of her TV appearances. In 2018, however, she starred on ITV’s reality show Our Shirley Valentine Summer, a series in which eight women were sent to a Greek villa with the aim of re-discovering themselves.

Between 1985 and 1989, Giles was married to Ultravox singer Midge Ure, and together they have a 36-year-old daughter, Molly; she also has a 25-year-old son named Ted.