‘Praying for Danniella Westbrook’: Sid Owen rallies round his EastEnders wife in her cancer fight

Danniella started off her showbiz career in modelling and, as a child, launched Next's children's fashionware and became the face of high street chain Tammy Girl. She also appeared in television advertisements for Opel cars and Coca Cola, had a small part in Grange Hill and appeared in the theatre in the West End.After appearing as an extra in EastEnders she was put forward for the role of Sam Mitchell at the age of 16 and successfully auditioned before first appearing on the BBC soap in July 1990.Before her rise to fame as blonde bombshell Sam on the show, Danniella sported long brown hair with a fringe and looks every inch the girl next door.

Danniella would soon turn her brown hair to golden blonde after joining the soap but in her early days in the series she kept her natural colour, as in this picture with co-star Mike Reid.

The actress has been open about her addiction to drugs and has admitted she first tried cocaine at the age of 14.After winning a part in EastEnders she became a regular on the London club scene and her drug use escalated, and by the age of 21 she was spending £400 a day on cocaine.In 2000 fans were shocked when pictures were published that showed Daniella's eroded nasal septum due to excessive drug use.Danniella checked into rehab and six months later appeared on television show The Priory when she claimed she had not used drugs in months. However, hosts Jamie Theakston and Zoe Ball struggled to get coherent answers from her as she was on drugs at the time despite her claims.She later said: "I said I was clean, but it was obvious I wasn't. I look about 50, and my voice was shaky. I should never have been allowed on. They wanted to laugh at me, rip me apart. I despise that sort of thing, but it did me the world of good because watching it I realised, 'I'm so ill.'"When it came to the crunch I thought, 'Hang on. I don't want to die.'"The star went back to rehab to try and beat her drug habit again and underwent reconstructive surgery on her nose.

A couple of years after joining EastEnders Danniella was starting to look more like a star in 2002. She was a regular on the red carpet and was often pictured on a night out and played up to the part by wearing her hair big, long and curly.

In 2003 Danniella appeared happy and healthy in promotional shots for the second series of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!The star sported a glowing tan and golden hair but, despite seeming to be in a better place, she walked out of camp on day nine after crying over how difficult she was finding life in the jungle and how much she was missing her husband Kevin Jenkins, who she divorced in 2014.

Despite admitting to relapsing on occasion and using drugs again in the past, Danniella displayed a more wholesome image in 2004 when she stepped out to the premiere of the Polar Express with her children.The mother looked more mature than her early EastEnders days and appeared happy and healthy as she sported a shorter blonde 'do.

By 2012 the actress had dramatically changed her look and looked happy on a night out as she showed off a glowing tan and long dark hair.

In 2014 Daniella was almost back to blonde as she looked more demure in stylish clothes during a television appearance on Lorraine while she wore her brown hair up in a bun.

Danniella said she was diagnosed with cancer in September 2018 and in 2019 admitted that she was still a regular user of cocaine, leading to her pal Jeremy Kyle offering to pay for a 12-week stint in rehab for the troubled star.