When Belinda Emmett’s brother Shane returned to Summer Bay, he was gifted a stunning portrait of his sister on the same set.
Sitting in the makeup chair on her last day at Home and Away, Belinda was tearful but still radiant, looking forward to a bright future. The young star was already suffering from the cancer that would claim her life seven years later at the tragically early age of 32. But there’s no hint of illness in this touching portrait.
WATCH: Channel Seven shares touching tribute for Belinda Emmett
Taken by a crew member, the smiling photograph was later gifted to Shane – an emotional but private keepsake for him and his family.
“It’s become a beautiful family treasure,” says the actor and author, remembering the adored big sister who always looked out for him. “It’s a lovely reminder of how much she meant to all sorts of people.”
Today, 15 years after Belinda’s sad, premature death on November 11, 2006, she is lovingly remembered by family, friends and fans alike – not least her bereaved husband, Rove McManus.
“It’s always difficult, when someone passes away so young, to make sense of it,” Shane, 45, tells New Idea. “I still marvel that all this time later, when people realise I’m Belinda’s brother, they always want to talk about her – whether they knew her in real life or just on-screen.
“The impact she made in such a short time is nothing short of extraordinary. She packed an incredible amount into her life, and that’s the lesson I’ve learnt from her – live to the fullest and shine as brightly as you can, because you never know how long you’ll have.”
The roll call of VIPs who sent condolences to the Emmett family is a testament to the warmth Belinda generated, including former Prime Minister John Howard, Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Bono, Delta Goodrem, and Kylie and Dannii Minogue.
Poignantly, her celebrity-studded funeral took place at the same church – Mary Immaculate in the Sydney suburb of Waverley – where she and Rove had joyfully married just 18 months before.
The couple’s final goodbye came seven years, to the week, since they first crossed paths at a Fox Studios party in 1999. Later, Rove recalled: “We shared a private joke that no-one else got, and I thought, ‘Oh, hello!’”
Back then, bright, bubbly and beautiful Belinda thought she had defeated breast cancer, diagnosed the previous year when she was only 24. But shatteringly, doctors detected secondary bone cancer in 2001, while she was making outback caper movie, The Nugget, with Eric Bana.
“That’s when Belinda discovered the recurrence, but she finished filming – which in its own way was quite extraordinary,” Shane says. “And then over the next five or six years she was just trying to beat cancer, which was the battle of a lifetime really.”
It was a struggle Belinda faced bravely, with grace and total unselfishness. Typically, her last words at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney expressed concern for her grief-stricken older sister, Lesley Arthur.
“She always cared more for other people, I never saw her feel sorry for herself,” smiles father-of-three Shane, who remains close to Rove McManus. “She never drew attention to her illness, although she was in and out of chemo and radiation, and had all sorts of really, really severe physical difficulties.
“We would hear so little about any of that. Sometimes it was like she wasn’t sick at all, because it just wasn’t a topic of conversation for her. It was never about Belinda.”
Growing up in idyllic Umina on NSW’s Central Coast, the talented actress and singer was always the same. Shane, only 18 months younger than Belinda, recalls her as “loyal to a fault” and fiercely protective – both at school and afterwards when he followed her into the entertainment industry.
With parents Laraine and Michael, the tight-knit Emmett clan – two boys and two girls – enjoyed “endless sunshine”, and road trips to Gold Coast holidays with The Beach Boys hits blaring on the car radio.
Every Christmas, the extended family would get together – all four grandparents were literally next-door neighbours – and on New Year’s Eve, great-grandma would throw a party where everyone was expected to perform.
No wonder Belinda “fell into” show business, scoring a role on Hey Dad..! at age 20 before moving on to Home and Away, where she earned a Gold Logie nomination for her role as Rebecca Fisher.
“Watching her get an agent and audition for things, she found success incredibly quickly,” says Shane, who has just published the second novel in his Obscura fantasy series.
“It was really exciting, but it took me a long time to get the courage to pursue acting myself. Once I did, it was a wonderful experience to share that with each other. Belinda was always calling and checking in to see how she could help. She was just incredibly generous with her time and her love.
“People really gravitated towards her. She was effervescent, so much fun to be around. I’ve worked with a lot of people in film and TV over the years, and I’ve never come across anyone who had anything negative to say about her. I love how much other people love her too.”
The family has created a memorial in Belinda’s honour – a park bench on a peaceful stretch of coastline – that reads, “Belinda Jane Emmett-McManus: I choose to be happy, so I am. Her grace, courage and talent are an inspiration to all.”
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