Former Packed to the Rafters actor Hugh Sheridan has shared a lengthy Instagram post revealing that he has tested positive for the coronavirus.
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Hugh, who played Ben Rafter on the hit series, is currently in hotel quarantine in Sydney after flying in from the US two weeks ago and shared his diagnosis with his followers.
“I’ve been quiet for the last few days cause I’ve been feeling all the varied emotions about my positive Covid test,” he penned on social media.
“I haven’t felt like talking to anyone much yet. I had a negative result when I arrived, I now know all my friends including who took me to LAX airport are all negative so it’s been confusing for me, it’s scary, frustrating & lonely.
The 35-year-old actor noted that he always preaches that it’s ok to not feel ok and let people know how you feel, adding that he’s trying to release stigma around men talking about their emotions.
“I realise that there are SO MANY people in far worse situations than me right now, it’s the main reason I haven’t wanted to talk publicly about my own situation,” he went on to say, adding that he is currently showing no symptoms and hasn’t done for the entire time.
“I currently have no symptoms and haven’t had this whole time, I am SO LUCKY and I keep reminding myself to count each blessing one by one,” he said.
“To everyone: this virus is seriously clever. Knowing now, that no one I saw back home overseas has it means I got it in a very short space of time (in transit or a surface) while I had minimal human contact.”
Hugh then shared a message of thanks to the quarantine staff and RPA Virtual Hospital who he called “amazingly informative and positive (emotionally).”
“To everyone that received a positive Covid test, I now know how that feels, I wish we could all be together so we could offer each other a shoulder or even better a HUG!”
He finished by saying: “If I’m not on social media as much it’s not necessarily cause I’m down, it’s cause it can make me feel a lil worse for the moment. So I’m tuning out and taking time to focus on editing my script The Dance, appropriately it deals with how to get through! This too shall pass. I AM OK!”
Many Australian celebrities flooded the comments section of Hugh’s post with messages of support.
“Here for you always sweetheart. And yes you will get through this because you are a strong wonderful beautiful soul,” his Rafters on-screen mum Rebecca Gibney wrote.
“Have a whiskey mate, you’ll be OK,” wrote George Houvardas, who played Nick “Carbo” Karandonis on the series.
Covid permitting, Hugh and the Packed To The Rafters cast are joining forces for a reboot of the hit series.
“I think it would be very much the same feeling,” the actor told TV WEEK of what he thinks a Rafters reboot will look like.
“Obviously, they sold the house, so it would have to be somewhere else. But I think it would be about what has happened in their lives over the last 10 years and where they are now.”
Hugh, who is close friends with his former co-star Jessica Marais, added that the cast are all still in contact and still love each other.
“Zoë Ventoura [who played his on-screen wife Mel] and I are still really close too. We just have to figure out a way to bring her back [to the reboot]. Maybe in a dream sequence!”
