Sherrie Hewson believes her brother was suffering from coronavirus when he died earlier this year.
The former ‘Coronation Street’ star lost her sibling Brett Hutchinson to an incurable brain tumour, following a battle with pneumonia, aged 71, but she’s convinced Covid-19 played a part in his death after he was diagnosed with grade 4 glioblastoma.
Speaking on talkRADIO’s ‘Drivetime’, she said: "I’ll always believe that Covid had something to do with his, they call it pneumonia but I don’t believe that.
"Controversially, I believe that that’s what it was called but no one, you can’t prove things, the sadness and the pain was too big to carry on and create a fuss."
Sherrie and her family all attended Brett’s funeral to make sure he went "in the right way".
Reflecting on the past few months, she added: "So it’s been horrendous, but this is a year I will never, never forget."
Earlier this year, Sherrie admitted she was worried she wouldn’t be able to see her brother again due to the coronavirus pandemic.
She explained at the time: "My family are absolutely everything to me yet I haven’t been able to see my two granddaughters aged nine years and nine months, my 13-year-old grandson, and my darling daughter Keeley. We’re in touch all the time but it’s really hard not being able to cuddle and kiss them.
"Also, my brother is in hospital with a brain tumour. I call him every other day but he is very ill and I don’t know if he’ll come out of this."
Sherrie likened the pandemic and the chaos it has created to "finding yourself in a zombie film".
She said: "I also feel OK health wise. But we’re all at a loss because, apart from the fear and the worry, nothing like this has ever happened to any of us before.
"It’s like finding yourself in a zombie film."