Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie comes to ITV1 and will be a very emotional and likely upsetting watch. But actor Jason Watkins, famous for shows such as The Catch, Des, The Crown and McDonald and Dodds, feels this very personal show was important to take part in.
Jason and wife Clara Francis have suffered every parent’s worst nightmare. In the early hours of New Year’s Day 2011, their two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Maude died suddenly from sepsis, leaving them facing a lifetime of loss and grief.
They'll tell their harrowing story for the first time as cameras follow their emotional house move from the flat where Maude was born and died.
"It’s still difficult to talk about. But as we’re about to move house the time feels right, although neither are easy," says Jason Watkins, who also has Bessie, 15, Gilbert, ten, and two sons from his first marriage. "I do think, ‘are we doing the right thing?’ But by sharing it, it sort of unburdens me and says, ‘she existed’."
Here's what to expect in Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie on ITV1...
Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie release date
Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie is a one-off documentary to be shown on ITV1 on Thursday, March 30 at 9pm. It will then become available on ITV's streaming service ITVX.
Jason Watkins on his story in Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie
In Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie, Jason Watkins reveals that at the end of 2010 Maude had what seemed like a simple chest infection. After being assessed at A&E she was sent home with antibiotics.
But by New Year’s Eve, her condition had worsened and Jason and Clara rushed back to the hospital, only for Maude to be discharged for a second time with what doctors suspected was croup.
"In the morning Bessie, who was three-and-a-half at the time, came in and said, ‘I can’t wake Maud’," recalls Jason. "I saw her in the cot and there was a trickle of blood that had dried in her mouth, so I knew she’d died straight away. It felt like we’d been smashed around in a storm."
Just a few months after losing Maude, Jason faced the trauma of an inquest into his daughter’s death, and in the powerful documentary, he returns to the coroner’s court, as well as the mortuary where Maude was taken after she’d died. Yet the inquest didn’t give the couple the answers he or Clara so desperately needed.
"We wanted to know why it happened and whether there was a mistake, but we didn’t get a resolution through the inquest," says Jason. "It was only in the years after Maud died that I learned she’d been the victim of sepsis. At the time I hadn’t even heard of it. But that realization has set us on a mission to raise awareness of this silent killer.
"‘I feel that if I somehow crack it, so that no more children die and that I fully understand the condition, then Maude will walk back into the room. And that’s irrational but it will never stop."
The heart-rending film follows Jason as he meets Professor Akash Deep, who runs a ground-breaking training program teaching doctors and nurses how to spot sepsis, and also opens up to two other fathers who have lost their daughters to the silent killer.
"Maybe I’ve bottled up my grief and maybe that’s a typical male response," says Jason. "Talking about the death of a loved one is so hard and complex, but opening up and talking about bereavement is a vital part of the grieving process."
Meanwhile, Jason hopes that sharing Maude’s story will in some way break the taboo of child loss and help other bereaved parents. "It’s over ten years but we’re still dealing with our grief," he says.
"The pattern of grief is irregular. You can have days where you feel okay and then you’ll have one catastrophic day where you don’t think you can continue any longer. But Maude’s loss can save lives. Sharing our story means we can also offer hope for other parents who’ve lost children. That’s what I want Maude’s memory to do."
Clara Francis on her story revealed in Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie
After Maude’s death, the first person Clara Francis called was her childhood friend, Emma. In the fog of grief, Clara couldn’t face packing away Maude’s treasured items, so Emma stored them in her attic. But in the documentary, cameras follow Clara and Jason as they finally feel ready to go through Maude’s possessions in preparation for their house move.
"As time has gone on Maude’s things have taken this significance and I feel compelled to go through them," says Clara. "I could be very healing it could be traumatic, I just don’t know."
In the end the experience is overwhelming, and Clara breaks down at the sight of Maude’s tiny shoes. "How can you go to sleep one night, to have a child who has got a cold or croup, and then wake up the next morning and your child is dead?" she says.
"Even after 11 years, it’s still sort of shocking. But this film is about breaking down the taboo of child loss. It’s so grim and unspeakable, people don’t know what to say or how to act around you. I think it’s that very British thing of not being very good or knowing how to deal with death. But also I want to talk about Maudie so people will know she was here. She was a really joyful child and I just feel so sad that I’ll never see her grow up."
As part of their grieving process, Jason and Clara have been involved with a support group for bereaved parents and Clara is now trained to run sessions there. But as the day of the house move approaches, she’s nervous about how she’ll feel.
"I had Maude at home, so this is where she was born and also where she died," Clara says. "I have no idea what it’s going to be like to not live in the place where she lived. I wonder, will it feel like we’ve moved on and left her behind? But Maude is with me and there’s no reason that she wouldn’t be wherever we are as a family."
Important information and the facts on sepsis
* Sepsis is a condition where the body’s immune system overreacts to an infection, causing it to go into overdrive and attack the body’s tissues and organs.
* According to The UK Sepsis Trust, which Jason and Clara are ambassadors for, it’s estimated that, in the UK, 48,000 people lose their lives to sepsis-related illnesses each year.
* The symptoms can be hard to spot. If you think you, your child, or someone you look after has symptoms of sepsis, call 999 or go to A&E. Trust your instincts.
* A child may have sepsis if they have any of these six symptoms...
1 Are breathing very fast
2 Have a fit or convulsion
3 Look mottled, bluish or very pale
4 Have a rash, which doesn’t fade when you press it or roll a glass over it
5 Are very lethargic or difficult to wake
6 Feel abnormally cold to the touch
* Any baby or child under 5 years old who is not feeding, vomiting repeatedly or hasn’t had a wee or wet nappy for 12 hours, might have sepsis.
For more information, visit...
The UK Sepsis Trust at sepsistrust.org
The NHS website on sepsis
At a recent charity event at London's Leicester Square to screen the film, hosted by Michael Grade, Jason Watkins said: "Creating this film was an incredibly emotional experience for Clara and me. We made it because we know so many families go through the pain of losing a child - and that by sharing our normal but quirky family, it shows that you can survive such adversity, in an imperfect way. Sepsis is such a difficult condition to diagnose and the better awareness amongst us all, which the film can radiate, can save lives. This evening's screening brought together people from charities that do so much important work to support people affected, including my wife and me, which we are so grateful for. We hope our film will in some way help to show others that, as hard as losing a child is, support is available and to highlight the need to keep improving diagnosis and treatment for sepsis, which is so vital."
UK Sepsis Trust Founder and Joint CEO Dr Ron Daniels added: "We're so grateful to Jason and Clara for their immense courage in sharing their unfathomable loss in this documentary and for highlighting the importance of the work of our charity the UK Sepsis Trust and Child Bereavement UK. It really brings home in the most moving and poignant way the fact that sepsis can enter the lives of any family at any time, affecting any member of that family, all too often with tragic consequences.
“At the UKST we are on a mission to reduce the number of avoidable deaths from sepsis, which run into the thousands every year. We achieve this by raising public awareness so that people can access healthcare in the right way at the right time, by providing our widely-used tools and training to health professionals across the UK and beyond and through our support nurses who help people bereaved by sepsis, as well as supporting those who've survived in their ongoing recovery journey. We firmly believe that this documentary will save lives.”
Ann Chalmers, the Chief Executive of Child Bereavement UK said: “We are immensely grateful to our Patrons Jason Watkins and Clara Francis for their dedication to raising awareness of the issues facing bereaved parents when a precious child dies. Families tell us that hearing others share their experience can help them feel less alone in their grief. Jason and Clara’s courage in making this moving documentary will importantly raise awareness of sepsis as well as highlighting the help that is available to parents after the devastation of child bereavement.”
Michael Grade said: “Jason and Clara are, quite simply, extraordinary. Telling their unimaginably painful story in this way makes for unforgettable viewing. The support and commitment they’ve given to both the UK Sepsis Trust and Child Bereavement UK have made such a difference – for which we couldn’t be more grateful. Our profound hope is that this heart-breaking film will raise the profile of this ‘killer condition’ and that’s what will, in turn, save lives.”
Is there a trailer Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie
Yes ITV has just released a trailer for Jason and Clara: In Memory of Maudie so do take a look below...
