Casualty actor Charles Venn has spoken candidly about the devastating personal loss he suffered while working on the popular BBC medical drama.

Charles, who plays paramedic Jacob Masters, is often seen supporting his colleagues on the show, but in reality, he had to rely on his co-stars for comfort during a difficult time.

Tragedy struck when Charles’ younger sister passed away unexpectedly, just two days before he was due to take a break from filming.

Despite his grief, the 52-year-old actor continued with his commitments, thanks to the support of his close-knit castmates, who he considers to be like family.

In an interview with the Mirror, Charles discussed the challenges of working on a medical drama, saying: “It’s about being switched on and delivering when the camera says ‘action’.

“You might be all over the place in rehearsals, just figuring it out, mapping out what’s going on and how you’re going to deliver this. But when the camera rolls, you deliver because we’re presenting a show for our audience.”

He added: “We’re humans like everybody else, and then we go through what we go through. Speaking for myself, I’ve had challenges and still somehow being able to deliver, that’s the hardest challenge.”

Charles bravely shared the details of his sister’s passing, saying: “In my case, when my junior sister passed away, unexpectedly, this would have been three years ago on June 7. I was in my hotel room.

“I had to go to work the next day. She officially passed away around 4am. I had two days at work before I was due to go home,” reports the Mirror.

“In my insane mind, I thought I could get through those two days. I really thought I would. It was still very raw in my head and my brain.

“I came to work, I was subdued, anybody who knows me would tell you I’m lively, full of energy, but I was very subdued, and it was still reeling, what just happened was very raw.

“I believe I got through the scene, I think I did, someone asked me ‘Are you ok?’ in my dressing room and of course, I wasn’t. They were kind enough to let me go home.

“But it’s the that same thing of despite what’s going on, the challenges, being able to put that to the side and deliver a performance, play the scene, play what’s required for the character to tell his story – that’s the biggest challenge.”

Charles, who has also appeared on the likes of EastEnders and Strictly Come Dancing, first burst onto Casualty on July 18, 2015, and since then, has become a firm favourite amongst fans and his colleagues.

“I never foresaw that,” he said of being on the show for a decade.

He added: “It’s such a familiar feeling here and you feel as though you’re not going through anything on your own.

“There’s always someone to talk to and that’s beautiful, it’s really refreshing, somewhat rare.

“Any changes, interfaceable, it doesn’t matter. As a team, guaranteed, we’ll get through it together.”