Kate Beckinsale opens up about the overwhelming grief of losing her mother, Judy Loe, sharing emotional tribute photos on her social media page this week
Kate Beckinsale has opened up about the heartbreaking loss of her mother, Judy Loe, describing her grief as “paralysing” and saying she still feels “blindsided” by her death.
Judy died in July at the age of 78 following a battle with stage four cancer. Kate revealed that her mother died in her arms on July 15 after what she called “immeasurable suffering.”
This weekend, the Underworld star, 52, took to Instagram to share emotional tributes and poignant images from Judy’s funeral, which was held at Chiswick House in London. Reflecting on the day, Kate described it as a “celebration of life,” just as her mother had requested.
Kate went on to reveal that her late mother “didn’t want anyone to wear black. “The fact that you have had to have a funeral at all is wrong and ludicrous. You are the biggest lover of life, the most vital, the most joyous,” she wrote in the caption of the picture, adding, “The only mandate you gave me over the years was that you wanted a celebration of your life and that no one was to wear black so no one did.”
The event was filled with music as well as dancing, and heartfelt memories from friends, family, and former co-stars. Kate was joined by her daughter Lily, 26, and her ex-partner Michael Sheen, who also attended to support them. One touching photo showed Lily and Michael embracing during the service.
In her post, Kate confessed that she still instinctively reaches for her phone to call her mum, only to remember she’s no longer there. “I still reach for my phone in the early hours of the morning to text you and then realise that I won’t get a response,” she wrote.
She went on to reveal how she was left ‘blindsided’ and “devastated” by her loss. She said, “I will never get over the lump of cement in my stomach that I have instead of you. Hopefully, I will learn to carry it better than I am currently carrying it which is clumsily and not well.
“At the moment I am so blindsided and devastated that it is safer for me to be on my own but I know from your funeral that the relationships you nurtured so carefully over the years are there for me too and that is another part of your generosity that will live on.”
She added that the funeral – though emotionally overwhelming – became a moving tribute to Judy’s spirit.
“Everybody danced – from the age of 3 to their mid 80s,” she said, “Your school friends attended, my school friends attended, Lily’s school friends attended. The love you inspired, quietly and generously was awe-inspiring and still is..”
Kate has spoken before about the intense bond she shared with her mother. In a previous post, she described Judy as “the compass of my life, the love of my life, my dearest friend.”
Judy’s death comes less than two years after the loss of Kate’s stepfather, director Roy Battersby, who died in January 2024 after suffering a stroke while battling cancer.
Kate also lost her father, actor Richard Beckinsale, when she was just five years old. He died suddenly in 1979 from a heart attack at age 31. The double trauma of losing both her father as a child and now her mother has left Kate reeling.
Despite the immense pain, the film star’s tribute to her mother concluded with a message of gratitude for the love her mother left behind. “You are in my blood. You are in my bones. You are in my heart, broken or not—you are there. I love you so much, Mama.”
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