Eastenders storyline highlights the issue of sight loss

BBC soap opera Eastenders has helped to highlight the issue of living with sight loss after character Dot Cotton revealed she was losing her vision. 

The character revealed the extent of her sight loss in a scene with Patrick Trueman, played by Rudolph Walker. Patrick had noticed his friend Dot struggling to see.

In the episode, broadcast on Halloween, he said: “Sometimes I’m talking to you and it’s as if you don’t even see me."

Dot is played by June Brown, who last year admitted she was experiencing problems with her own sight. In the episode her character finally confided in her friend that she thought she was going blind.

Viewers were then briefly shown the world through Dot’s eyes, with blurred edges around a cloudy area in the centre of her vision. Her symptoms are synonymous with those of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the most common cause of sight loss in the UK. 

If you, or a friend or family member has been diagnosed with a macular condition and you would like further information or support, contact our helpline on 0300 30 30 111.