The widow of The Bill actor Ben Roberts says she has been 'overwhelmed' with support for an outdoor space created at the Nottingham hospital where he was a patient for 15 years. Mr Roberts, who was famous for playing Chief Inspector Derek Conway in the long-running ITV drama, died on June 7 aged 70 following years of ongoing complications with his kidneys.
Mr Roberts was therefore a regular patient in the renal unit at Nottingham City Hospital. Mr Roberts developed rheumatoid arthritis in the early 2000s but later experienced symptoms including weight loss and breathlessness, eventually being diagnosed with kidney failure and having a kidney transplant.
He was waiting for a second kidney transplant when he died, with his passing coming just after his first day out following two years of self-isolation during the pandemic. His wife Helen, who herself grew up in Nottingham and was a continuity announcer for Central Television in the city, said the trip out had been to attend an air show.
