Carlyle nearly quit acting after son's illness

19/02/2008 - 15:12:26
Scottish actor Robert Carlyle nearly turned his back on his acting career after his youngest son was struck down with a life-threatening condition.

The 'Full Monty' star was left devastated when his seven-month-old son Pearce was taken ill with intussusception - a condition where the large intestine swallows up the smaller.

He says: "The surgeons had to open him up and untangle the mess or he would have died.

"We were told that he would have a 50-50 chance of surviving. I can remember sitting in the waiting room - a scene from a million different films - thinking, 'Please don't let my wee boy die.'"

After Pearce, now two, pulled through the ordeal, Carlyle only wanted to spend time with his family - and insists he nearly gave up acting for good.

He says: "I wanted to chuck it all in and spend time with my family. I thought life is too short to waste any of it. I did fall out of love with what I do for a living for a while."