‘I miss her every day'

For more than two decades, Olivia has been mourning the loss of her goddaughter

She cemented herself as one of the world’s most celebrated stars, thanks to her powerful voice and leading roles in beloved films like Grease, but these days it’s Olivia Newton-John’s brave fighting spirit that she’s most admired for.

Olivia, 71, has remained positive and optimistic about her almost three-decade-long cancer battle, but she’s no stranger to heartache. Behind the scenes, she’s bravely harboured a 28-year family secret that changed the course of her life.

In 1991 Olivia, then married to her Xanadu co-star Matt Lattanzi, suffered the loss of her beloved five-year-old goddaughter Colette Chuda from cancer. The daughter of one of Olivia’s closest friends Nancy Chuda, the little girl passed away from Wilms tumour, a rare form of kidney cancer, leaving both families devastated.