EastEnders star James Bye and his wife Victoria have revealed their son Rufus was rushed to hospital ‘screaming in pain’ after eating a poisonous garden plant.
The actor, 41, who played Martin Fowler in the BBC soap, shares four children with his wife Victoria – Edward, ten, Louis, eight, Hugo, five, and Rufus, two.
James’ wife Victoria shared the worrying ordeal on Instagram on Thursday before issuing an update on Friday to confirm Rufus was fine, after spending a night in hospital.
Victoria explained within ‘minutes’ Rufus’ tongue started to swell after eating an Italian arum plant, which can cause skin irritations, arrhythmia, and internal bleeding.
She announced on Thursday: ‘So. More of a public service announcement than a post really but as we all know, life with kids is anything but predictable..
‘So, after spending the night in hospital (I swear they’ll start charging us rent soon) after Rufus decided to snack on a plant in the garden — one I didn’t even know was dangerous. All hell let loose. (full video in next post – wouldn’t let me post here)

EastEnders star James Bye and his wife Victoria have revealed their son Rufus, two, was rushed to hospital ‘screaming in pain’ after eating a poisonous garden plant


James’ wife Victoria shared the worrying ordeal on Instagram on Thursday before issuing an update on Friday to confirm Rufus was fine, after spending a night in hospital

Victoria explained within ‘minutes’ Rufus’ tongue started to swell after eating an Italian arum plant, which can cause skin irritations, arrhythmia, and internal bleeding
‘Within minutes his tongue had started to swell, he was screaming & we had to call 999. (As always – NHS heroes, honestly.)
‘Thankfully he’s absolutely fine now but it turned out the culprit was Italian Arum, a really common plant with bright orange berries that looks innocent but is seriously toxic if ingested.
‘I mean, I had no idea. And once I started looking into it… turns out there are loads of plants like that quietly minding their own (deadly) business in UK gardens.’
James recently exited EastEnders and recalled his ‘choking sobs’ as he filmed his emotional last scene as Martin Fowler.
The beloved character was tragically killed off during the BBC soap’s 40th anniversary live episode, having been crushed by a steel beam while rescuing his longtime love Stacey Slater after an explosion at the Queen Vic.
Speaking ahead of his character’s funeral, James explained how they had rehearsed the scene so ‘nothing could go wrong’ for the live show, but he still felt his heart beat through his chest with adrenaline.
The actor told The Mirror: ‘At the final rehearsal, I lost it. When Stacey walked away to talk to the paramedic, it was like an out-of-body experience.
‘She came back and I had tears pouring down my face. When I spoke again, I didn’t think anyone would be able to understand what I was saying through my choking sobs.’

Martin Fowler actor James, 41, shares four children with his wife Victoria: Edward, ten, Louis, eight, Hugo, five, and Rufus, two

James recently exited EastEnders and recalled his ‘choking sobs’ as he filmed his emotional last scene as Martin Fowler
Admitting that he won’t watch his own cremation, which was filmed the month before, he also revealed the strange request made by the crew.
James added: ‘If I’m honest, I’d find it a bit weird. The art department were asking for pictures of me to put in the order of service. But I said no. I don’t want real photographs of me at my funeral, with my real family cut out.’
After being the first ever baby to be born on the show, Martin was tragically killed following an explosion at the Queen Vic.
Following his heroic attempt to rescue his longtime love Stacey Slater, he was crushed by a falling beam.
At first, it appeared that Martin had been successfully rescued from underneath the beam, but his heart then stopped as firefighters rushed to try and save him.
His ex-wife Stacey was left in floods of tears as Martin died in front of her eyes just moments after he declared his love for her and proposed.
The heartbreaking episode ended with Stacey hugging Martin’s lifeless body while her screams could be heard by those waiting outside the Queen Vic for news.