Inbetweeners star Emily Atack has paid tribute to her former acting co-star, Radio 4 comedian Maddy Anholt.
Anholt died on Thursday (14 September), one year after she was diagnosed with a “rare and aggressive brain cancer”, her family announced. She was 35.
Anholt starred in three episodes of The Emily Atack Show with the eponymous star, 33, in its first season on ITV2.
Sharing a selfie of the two of them, Atack wrote on Instagram: “It’s hard to find the words. Maddy Anholt was one of the sweetest, FUNNIEST, gorgeous and most hard working women I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing and working with.
“Just utterly beautiful and so talented. She made me laugh so much. Sending every ounce of my love and support to her family. Such an unbearably tragic loss.”
Anholt spent her final weeks with her parents at their home, Sunflower House, “bathed in love and calm, and with the sounds of nature all around”, they said.
“You may know that shortly after the birth of her incredible daughter Opal last year, Maddy was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer. She handled the ensuing surgery and treatment with astonishing grace and courage, accompanied every step of the way by her family and devoted husband, Ben,” they wrote in a statement shared on a GoFundMe page set up to provide for Opal, who is one.
Her family expressed their gratitude for “the countless nurses, doctors, and the NHS as a whole” for caring for Anholt “with unfailing dignity and compassion”.
“In particular we would like to thank the magnificent team at Seaton Hospice at Home, who are the embodiment of empathy, professionalism and love,” the statement continued.
Anholt had her own BBC Radio comedy series about a failing vape cafe, set in Dundee, called No Smoke in 2017.
In 2015 she took her one-woman comedy Diary Of A Dating Addict to the Gilded Balloon at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Soho Theatre.
She also wrote the handbook How To Leave Your Psychopath, which looks at coercive control and abusive relationships, last year and was set to follow it up with Red Flags in 2024.
Farah Nazeer, chief executive of Women’s Aid, said the charity was “devastated” as she confirmed the death of its ambassador.
Nazeer said: “Maddy worked closely with us as she wrote her book about unhealthy relationships, and her passion was to raise awareness of abuse amongst younger people, which she did by working with us on our Love Respect website and through her comedy and writing.
“Maddy was a creative, caring and determined woman, who gave her time freely to support us at Women’s Aid.
“She wanted to help so that other young women would not experience controlling relationships, and in her memory we will strive to continue this important work.
“Today our thoughts are with Maddy’s family, her husband Ben, and her one-year-old daughter Opal.”
Also paying tribute was children’s author Giles Paley-Phillips, who said: “I am absolutely devastated to hear the sad news about Maddy Anholt, a truly wonderful, inspiring human being, and cherished friend.
“Finding it hard to find the words.”
Additional reporting by the Press Association
