'Surviving cancer makes you want to grab each moment

Singer Brenda Edwards on living life to the full, her latest campaign to raise awareness of glaucoma and the supportive sisterhood of Loose Women

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Most will know Brenda Edwards from airing her opinions on the Loose Women panel or belting out theatre classics on the West End stage, but the 56-year-old, as she tells OK!, will never forget where it all began.

Rising to fame as a singing hopeful on The X Factor back in 2005, Brenda, two decades on, looks back on the time with fond memories. “The X Factor definitely put me on the map and gave me a platform, I’d been auditioning for years and never got anywhere,” recalls Brenda of her musical roots.

“I’ve been singing for as long as I can remember, really. Be it in a church, a theatre or on stage, I’ve always just wanted to sing. And I’ve been fortunate enough to make a career out of it. It might sound cheesy, but, without The X Factor, I would not be doing what I’m doing today. And here I am, still going 20 years later!”

Since then, Brenda has gone on to star in smash hit stage productions such as Chicago, Hairspray and We Will Rock You. But one job she loves just as much as treading the boards is her seat on the Loose Women panel, which she visibly lights up about as we chat.

“I love it! Love it,” she says of the show, which features Coleen Nolan, Ruth Langsford, Christine Lampard and more.

“The women are all different personalities, which I think is what makes the show so unique and one of a kind, you know?

There isn’t another show like it in the UK and I don’t think there ever will be to be honest,” says Brenda. “They all come together in the fun times and in the sad times, they’re really supportive. I love being part of such an incredible group.”