Gillian Taylforth - Personal Life

Personal Life

Taylforth is the sister of actress Kim Taylforth. During her time in EastEnders she dated her fellow cast-mate Nick Berry, who played Simon Wicks. She began a relationship with Geoff Knights in the late 1980s. The couple lived in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire. She gave birth to their daughter Jessica in 1992. In 1996 she suffered a miscarriage, and less than a year later doctors told her that the baby she was carrying had severe abnormalities and she was advised to terminate the pregnancy." In 1999 she became a mother for a second time, to son Harrison.

Knights and Taylforth have an extensive tabloid media history. In January 1994 Taylforth was involved in a high-profile court case when she sued The Sun newspaper for libel after they ran a story claiming she and Knights had performed sexual acts on a slip road on the A1 in their Range Rover. Taylforth claimed that her partner had suffered an acute attack of pancreatitis and she was merely massaging his stomach to soothe his abdominal pain; however, a police officer claimed that she was performing fellatio instead. During the court case The Sun's defence counsel, George Carman QC, entered into evidence a 35 minute home video of Taylforth "suggestively posing with a large sausage graphically simulating masturbation with a wine bottle" and boasting to the camera, “I give very good head”. The jury returned a 10-2 majority verdict in favour of The Sun, after which Taylforth collapsed and was taken away by an ambulance.

In November 2006, after celebrating their 20th anniversary, Knights was arrested following a bust-up with Taylforth and spent 18 hours in a police cell. Knights reportedly argued with Taylforth in front of their seven year old son at their home in Herts, and then allegedly punched her; she required three stitches on her scalp. Taylforth contacted the police resulting in Knight's arrest, but she reportedly dropped all charges against her partner. In January 2009, Knights was arrested for allegedly assaulting the ex-boyfriend of the couple's daughter Jessica, who was in turn arrested for allegedly assaulting Jessica. It was reported in June 2009 that Taylforth and Knights had split after 23 years together.

In 1995 Taylforth wrote an autobiography entitled Kathy and Me in which she describes her childhood, her teenage years, her first forays into acting and her lifestyle.