Emmerdale’s Mark Jordon and Laura Norton, best known for playing Daz Spencer and Kerry Wyatt on the ITV soap respectively, were brought to tears after being hailed ‘inspirations’ from their co-stars.
Mark and Laura’s children, son Jesse, 3, and daughter Ronnie, 1, have both been diagnosed with Usher syndrome, which is a rare, incurable genetic condition which affects vision and hearing and, in some cases, balance.
Following the news, Mark and Laura were approached by charity CUREUsher, who’s mission is to raise awareness of Usher syndrome and directly fund research to help find a cure, and asked to be Patrons.
In the season finale of ITVBe’s Drama Queens Amy Walsh, who plays Tracy Metcalfe on the soap, raised a toast to the couple.
‘We wanted to congratulate you two, for the amazing work you’ve done. You’re an inspiration to everyone around this table. But the most important people who you’re an inspiration to is your two babies,’ she said.
‘We’re so proud of the work you’ve done, we’re with you every step of the way and we’ll do everything we can to help you.’
Actress Roxy Shahidi, who plays Leyla Harding on the soap, added: ‘There are things that wouldn’t have happened if you two hadn’t been brave enough to stand up, own it publicly, dealing with your own emotions and still put yourself out there to try and help others.’
Laura and Mark went public with the news in February last year, with Laura sharing that they first thought something was different in 2021 when Jesse failed hearing tests.
‘My intuition told me there was a serious problem and I was in tears at the thought of it,’ Laura revealed in a previous episode of Loose Women.
However, they didn’t know it was Usher syndrome specifically until Laura was pregnant with their second child.
Usher syndrome causes deafness or hearing loss, and an eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Sometimes, it also causes problems with balance.
People with Usher syndrome tend to get diagnosed as children or teenagers and while there is no cure for it, there are treatments to help manage vision, hearing and balance problems.
In order to raise awareness and funds for the research, Laura and Mark worked together on a project called ‘Cure Usher Charity Ball’.
