Fact Check: Is Denise Welch dead? Loose Women star confirms she’s alive after falling victim to death hoax

The English actress and television personality, Denise Welch, was forced to make an update on her health after falling victim to a death hoax. Several messages went viral on social media on Sunday, December 3, 2023, claiming that she had passed away. However, the actress is alive and even took to social media to clarify the same.

The 65-year-old, who is best known for being a panelist on the iTV series Loose Women, took to X, formerly Twitter, to debunk the rumor. She tweeted and said that she was about the tune into the latest episode of I'm a Celebrity.

"I’m alive and well and about to watch the jungle. Thanks for your concern," she wrote.

Netizens began getting concerned after part of her Wikipedia page was changed to provide details of her alleged death. Several X users began posting tributes to Denise, according to The Sun. However, as mentioned earlier, Denise Welch is alive and the news of her death was only a hoax.

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Denise Welch says she’s ‘alive and well’ after winding up in a death hoax

Denise Welch, the mother of English singer-songwriter Matty Healy, revealed to her fans that she is alive on her X account on Sunday, December 3, 2023. Many comments and tweets about her demise began circulating online after her Wikipedia page showed that she had died.

The page has since been edited back to normal, however, a now-deleted paragraph read:

"Denise Welch sadly was killed after being ran over by Kerry Riches' mobility scooter after it was hijacked in a drunken rampage by Farida Khalifa, hair and make up artist for the traveller and gypsy community."

According to The Independent, the information portal claimed Denise Welch was supposedly involved in an accident with Big Brother stars Kerry Riches and Farida Khalifa.

A different edit showed that "explosive diarrhea" was the cause of Denise Welch's death. As per HuffPost, it was seemingly a reference to her recent admission to The Guardian. In the interview, the actress revealed she once accidentally defecated on the streets of New York while wearing cream trousers.

She said at the time that she saw a few people turn and look at her, adding that while she isn't famous in New York when her son is around, she is recognized as his mother. Denise went on to say that she was smiling and waving at all the people.

"I went back to the hotel room and bent over to get something out of the suitcase, and my husband said, 'Do you realise you’ve sh*t yourself?'," she added.

Social media users believe it was all a joke built by anonymous netizens at the expense of the television personality. They even quipped about it under the star's post about her health update. Anyone can edit nearly any page and improve articles immediately, on Wikipedia.

Denise Welch said she would be stepping away from the public eye earlier this year. She explained that it was only temporary, following her 65th birthday on May 22, 2023. According to The Independent, the actress thanked her followers for the “lovely messages and comments” for her birthday.

"I’m going off on a little adventure for a couple of weeks so I’m going to be off here and off my phone. I don’t quite know how I’m going to cope, but I’m going to give it a try, so don’t think I have disappeared. It’s just a temporary little holiday and I’ll be back soon," she added.

Despite the online news, Denise Welch is "alive and well" and was preparing to appear on Loose Women this week. It is a lunchtime chat show featuring a rotating panel that includes women from the entertainment and journalism industry. The ladies were joined by singer and social media star, James Blunt, on December 4, 2023.