HOSPITAL'S SURPRISE FOR YOUNG TAYLOR SWIFT FAN
When young Taylor Swift fan Daisie realised spinal surgery would stop her seeing her idol she was devastated.
But hospital staff ensured that if Daisie could not get to Wembley, Swift would be brought to her bedside, with a special screening of the Eras Tour.
She has a condition called Neurofibromatosis Type 2 and is prone to developing tumours on her brain and spine. One had to be removed from her spine, in June.
After the 10-year-old told Birmingham Children's Hospital how upset she was that an operation clashed with the show, staff sprinkled some Swiftie magic for her, decorating her room and handing her special Eras Tour ticket for the screening.
It had been a hard enough endeavour to get Daisie tickets for the Eras Tour in the first place, and she had been asking her parents every day: "How many days is it now?"
Along with the bunting and balloons, Daisie was given friendship bracelets to swap them with other Swift fans at the hospital.
During the screening of the film of the Eras Tour concert, she got her own replica of Taylor Swift's 22 hat.
Daisie's father, Jake, told the BBC: "When we told Daisie she wouldn't be able to go, she was devastated. Her whole world turned upside down.
"It's what she'd been looking forward to for a year."All of that changed when she saw the surprise about what staff had put on for her.
"She loved it. As soon as she walked in, her face lit up," Jake said.
"She had this beaming smile. I haven't seen her so happy since she had the operation.
"She kept saying it was amazing. Everyone in the room was nearly crying."
Daisie's father, from Solihull, said everyone at the hospital went above and beyond to cheer up his daughter.
"I think she felt so loved in that moment, and happy," he said.
Daisie has been a Taylor Swift fan for several years, after watching the movie Sing where a character played by Reese Witherspoon sings Swift's smash hit Shake It Off, from her album 1989.
"It started then and she became a huge Taylor Swift fan," Jake said.
"Her music is on all the time, she's always looking at photos of what she's wearing, and as soon as an album comes out she wants to listen."
Taylor Swift's music has been a big source of catharsis for Daisie, who was diagnosed with her first tumour in 2018.
Since her recent 12-hour surgery, she has lost control of her arms and legs, but is "progressing well" with physiotherapy, according to her father.
"When she was diagnosed with her first tumour, it devastated us," Jake said.
"But she recovered really well and she's been able to have a really normal happy life."
'Atmosphere was incredible'
Commenting on Daisie's care at the hospital, Jake said: "It's been absolutely amazing, from the surgeon right down to the housekeepers and cleaners, it's been absolutely outstanding.
"The nurses can't do enough for you. You never want for anything in there."
A spokesperson for the hospital said: "Daisie has been bedbound at our hospital for the last 40 days, meaning she missed the concert of her dreams. We decided to change that.
"The atmosphere was incredible, the tears were real and the priceless smile on Daisie’s face says it all.
"This is why our charity exists, to do more for our patients and their families.
"As well as funding big things like new research, equipment and buildings, we bring the magic,, so every young person gets to live their life as a child first and a patient second."
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2024-07-02T05:10:08Z dg43tfdfdgfd