Eastenders’ Roxy Mitchell Shock At ‘Abuse’ Jibe For Wanting Operation For Deaf Daughter
EASTENDERS star Rita Simons says she has been accused of abusing her deaf daughter for deciding she should have an operation to enable her to hear.
Simons, who plays Roxy Mitchell in the BBC soap, and her husband Theo Silveston have decided Maiya, six, will have a cochlear implant to give her hearing in both ears.
But she has revealed in a new interview that the couple had encountered “extraordinary” hostility because of the decision. She said: “It comes mainly from people who firmly believe deafness should be embraced rather than treated as a physical deficiency that should be corrected.
“I totally respect their point of view. But when a 19-year-old girl told me I was an ‘abuser’ to let my child have a cochlear implant, I was horrified and deeply hurt.”
In the interview in the latest edition of Hello! magazine, she added: “I would throw myself in front of a bus for my girls – and yet I was being judged by someone who didn’t know me or understand my emotional stance at all.
“We know it’s not a miracle cure and her hearing won’t be perfect. But, in time, her brain will process what it is hearing and compensate, making sounds more familiar to her.”
Same Difference 