Danniella Westbrook has revealed the results of her latest facial reconstruction surgery, proudly showing off her ânew faceâ in a poolside selfie from Dubai just days after having her bandages removed.
The former EastEnders star, 52, appeared bruised and swollen around her nose as she posed in a blue halterneck bikini, but looked upbeat as she pouted for the camera under the Middle Eastern sun. The procedure, carried out at Gargash Hospital, included a full face, neck and brow lift alongside lip and nose reconstruction â another major step in her long battle to repair the damage caused by years of addiction and osteoporosis.
For Danniella, this surgery is more than cosmetic. She has struggled for decades with a collapsed septum, a devastating consequence of her past cocaine use. Over the years, she has undergone multiple operations in an effort to rebuild what she once described as her âcollapsingâ face.
Last month, she publicly thanked her surgeon, Dr Parviz Sadigh, writing that she had âa massive amount of love and respectâ for him and praising his hard work. She added that âeveryday I grow and glow xxxx thank you and roll on Feb for the next operation,â signalling her determination to continue the gruelling process.
The starâs health struggles have also impacted her career. She had been set to make a screen comeback in the film Tales From The Trap, playing a gun-selling gangster granny opposite Liv Hawkins. However, she was later recast, with the role going to Kim Tiddy, after she was rushed to hospital with breathing difficulties.
A source close to Danniella revealed at the time that she had been admitted due to respiratory issues, forcing her to pull out of filming. The insider explained that she had been due to make her movie comeback in the gritty role and that it was âreally disappointingâ as many were looking forward to seeing her return to the screen.
Danniella has previously spoken candidly about how her addictions began during her early fame. She admitted she was âalways in clubs and everyone was doing coke and it was glamorous â except obviously, it wasnât at all. I was just very young, very stupid and very easily led.â
Reflecting on her time in Albert Square, she suggested there should be better support for young actors entering the industry. She said she believed someone at EastEnders should warn newcomers that their lives are about to change, that they will be invited to places and offered drugs, and that they need guidance about the kinds of people and pressures they will face â and how quickly everything they worked for can disappear.
Danniella, who found fame at just 16, estimated she spent around ÂŁ250,000 on cocaine at the height of her addiction. Her contract with EastEnders was terminated in 1996 due to her drug use, marking a painful chapter in her career.
Her last major TV appearance was on Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, where she reached the final. Now, nearly a decade later, she appears determined to reclaim control â one surgery, and one selfie, at a time.
