26 Dec 2016

Carrie Fisher stable after heart attack

10:25 am on 26 December 2016

Actress Carrie Fisher is in stable condition after suffering a heart attack on Friday, her mother says.

Fisher, 60, who played Princess Leia Organa in Star Wars, is in the intensive care unit of a Los Angeles hospital.

Carrie Fisher

Carrie Fisher suffered a heart attack while on a flight on Friday. Photo: AFP

She had heart problems during a flight from London to Los Angeles, and passengers attempted to revive her with CPR.

Friends and colleagues have shared their hopes for her swift recovery.

Her mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, said on Twitter: "Carrie is in stable condition. If there is a change, we will share it. For all her fans & friends. I thank you for your prayers & good wishes."

Princess Leia

Carrie Fisher in Return of the Jedi. Photo: AFP

Fisher had been on tour promoting her latest book, The Princess Diarist.

The heart attack happened about 15 minutes before the plane landed in LA, celebrity news website TMZ reported. A medic who was travelling on the plane administered CPR.

Paramedics then spent a further 15 minutes administering further CPR to Fisher before getting a pulse, TMZ said. The actress was on a ventilator in the UCLA medical centre, the website said.

Fisher appeared in the original Star Wars trilogy and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a sequel released last year.

She appeared in many other films, including The Blues Brothers and When Harry Met Sally.

She has written four novels and three memoirs and was previously married to the musician Paul Simon.

She is the daughter of singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds.

- BBC