Bobby Davro has spoken about the “absolute agony” of watching his fiancée battle pancreatic cancer.
The funnyman, 64, proposed to his long-term partner Vicky Wright last year after 12 years together.
And now he has spoken out to offer strength and support to others in a similar situation - adding that they have both tried to “keep on laughing”.
He said: "My best advice for someone in a similar position is that laughter is the best medicine.
"I always remember this quote, 'Don't let the world change your smile - get your smile to change the world’.”
Vicky, 63, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which is difficult to spot until at an advanced stage. last year. Her dad also died from the disease.
Bobby added: “To see someone as beautiful as her with this illness is horrfic. It's so sad.
"It's extremely, extremely, extremely painful," he told the Daily Star.
Bobby added that he is thankful he has been able to throw himself in to his work as a coping mechanism - and shut down any critics who might question why he isn’t spending all his time with his wife-to-be.
He explained: "Thank goodness I've got my work, because it keeps my mind off this for a bit of time.
"I don't want the fact I'm keeping working to sound selfish. Everyone who knows me knows it's just a distraction for a bit of time from trying to help Vicky. I need to see people laughing, and I like that I can still make people laugh while dealing with this."
Bobby shot to fame in the 1980s with his Saturday primetime telly shows including BOBBY Davro On The Box, and Bobby Davro's TV Weekly.
He has gone on to star in EastEnders, Dancing On Ice and Celebrity Come Dine With Me.
He has just finished a short Easter panto run in Rapunzel.
Tonight he will perform at a stand-up charity gig with his old friend Jim Davidson in Great Yarmouth to raise money for The Caister Lifeboat Appeal.
Dad-of-three Bobby said: "Vicky's illness is a tragedy, and it's been a personal and family tragedy until now. But now I hope talking about it can help other people.
"There are millions of other people with partners and wives and husbands who are going through the same thing. I just want to tell them you have to push forward and get back up - and never, ever let life beat you.
"But this is just really painful."
