Britain's Got Talent magician Marc Spelmann has spoken in depth about the "pure hell" he and his wife Tessa went through after she was diagnosed with breast cancer during her pregnancy. Marc's incredible performance on Saturday's BGT prompted Ant and Dec to push their golden buzzer after hearing the inspirational story of how Tessa had managed to beat the disease and welcome a healthy baby daughter named Isabella – after years of failed IVF. Now Marc has revealed the full extent of his family's heartache in an interview with the Mirror, sharing that the couple had decided to give IVF one last chance, after five rounds and ten years of trying for a baby.
Britain's Got Talent magician Marc Spelmann wowed the audience with his performance
"We found it was hard for her to conceive. We gave it one last chance and we were convinced that it wasn’t going to work. We did a test and it came through negative, so we resigned ourselves to adopting, because we were desperate to be parents," Marc, 45, said "When you do IVF you have to have a blood test... So Tessa went and had the blood test and you have to wait an hour or so and then they said 'Congratulations, you are pregnant'. It was the most bizarre moment ever. She burst into tears because it was 10 years of trying. She couldn't contain herself. It was what I class as real magic."
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Ant and Dec were visibly moved by his story - and hit their golden buzzer
But just three months later, Tessa discovered a lump, which was diagnosed as an aggressive form of breast cancer, leaving the mother-to-be needing chemotherapy and a mastectomy. "The only words that came out of her mouth were 'What about my baby?' which says everything about Tessa. We had days of pure hell – is Tessa going to make it, is the baby going to make it?" Marc told the publication. "Tessa had a reduced form of chemotherapy so Isabella was safe inside but Tessa lost her hair and had to have a mastectomy...Isabella was two months premature but had to come out by C-section so then Tessa could be whisked away for radiotherapy and a harsher form of chemotherapy. It was a roller coaster ride, with highs and dark lows, even after Isabella's birth."
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Marc's proud wife Tessa was sat in the audience
Proud Tessa was sat in the audience to support Marc's incredible BGT performance, after which Simon Cowell told the magician: "I have a feeling this act is going to change your life. That was unbelievable." Of making it through to the live semi-finals, Marc added: "There was so much emotion, because it was dedicated to Tessa and Isabella."