Hollyoaks star Abi Phillips gets engaged to partner of 11 years

Hollyoaks star Abi Phillips has announced her engagement to her partner of 11 years, Gav.

The actress, 29, who played Liberty Savage on the soap, took to Instagram on Friday to share the happy news.

Abi posted a photo of herself showing off her dazzling ring as she posed in front of Italy’s Lake Garda after going on vacation with her boyfriend.

She captioned her post, “So this happened last night!

‘The most magical week on Lake Garda, with my favorite person in the world, ended with our engagement.

“The most perfect sunset proposal on the edge of the lake.

“The past 11 years together have been the best of my life and I am so looking forward to being together forever.

Thank you for making this trip the most incredible week, it will forever hold a place in my heart. I love you so much!’

It comes after Abi revealed she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer last year after having two lumps tested on her neck.

Abi told her Instagram followers at the time that she was initially told a doctor shouldn’t worry her due to her young age, before asking for a second opinion after Love Islander Demi Jones raised awareness by revealing the location of her own divide tumors.

Former soap star Abi admitted she never expected to be told she had cancer, saying: “So I took these pictures before my scans and after my biopsy and laughed at how ridiculously dressed I looked in hospital for a performance , I didn’t expect to get the news for a second which I did two weeks later…

She explained that she was originally told the lumps were “nothing to worry about” and that she was probably just recovering from a minor illness.

Abi said: ‘I had previously been sent away from the doctors after finding two lumps on my neck, they passed it on and said I was ‘young’ and it would be nothing and I would probably get over a cold’ or my body was ‘fighting something’.

As much as I wanted to hear that, I wanted everything checked for my own peace of mind. I contacted a specialist and she immediately told me that she was very concerned about where my nodules were and she referred me for an urgent biopsy and scans.’

Abi further revealed that a consultant later confirmed the worst and told her that her cancer urgently needed surgery and radiation.

She added that she wouldn’t have pushed to see a specialist if Demi hadn’t shared her ordeal with thyroid cancer on social media, realizing their nodules were “in the exact same place.”

Abi rose to fame on Hollyoaks at the age of 16 when she debuted as Liberty in 2010. She also famously wrote the song Missing You which featured in Steph Cunningham’s death scene. The character of Liberty Savage is now played by Jessamy Stoddart, who took on the role in 2018.