Maisie Smith has opened up about how boyfriend Max George's health ordeal has transformed their outlook on life. The former EastEnders star, who turns 24 this week, spoke exclusively to OK! magazine at the Tric Awards in London last month, revealing that the Wanted singer's heart surgery has made them more impulsive and grateful.
Max, 36, was diagnosed with an atrioventricular block, causing an abnormal heartbeat, and underwent surgery in December to receive a pacemaker. Complications led to a second procedure two months later. Maisie said: 'It has just made us realise how important life is and how much we’ve just got to live in the moment – you never know what’s around the corner. We’re definitely more impulsive now and we know that anything is possible.'
The couple, who met on Strictly Come Dancing in 2020 and began dating in 2022, live together in Manchester. Maisie described Max as 'getting stronger every day' and said she is 'so proud of how he’s handled it'. She added that the experience has not brought them closer because 'it was pretty hard for us to get any closer to be honest – we’ve always been inseparable.'
Maisie, who rose to fame as Tiffany Butcher on EastEnders, is now focused on musical theatre. She recently appeared alongside Max in Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds. While she could not reveal her next project, she said: 'I’m still loving doing theatre and that’s my main focus.' The couple plan a trip to France this summer.
