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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Entertainment
Katie Fitzpatrick

BBC Ambulance: The extraordinary moment a woman unexpectedly gave birth at the Britannia Hotel

A woman unexpectedly gave birth in a hotel room toilet after having a pregnancy test the same day - and it came back negative.

The mum, called Stacey, was staying at the Britannia Hotel in Manchester city centre after attending a Harry Potter convention when she delivered the baby girl after suffering back pains.

The 25-year-old had been to the doctors earlier that day not feeling well but a pregnancy test had come back negative, it was explained on the BBC series Ambulance.

The BAFTA award-winning series has returned to follow the work of staff from North West Ambulance Service in and around Greater Manchester.

Stacey's worried friend called for an ambulance explaining: "My friend, she's not been well all day and then she's literally just had a baby."

With an ambulance on the way to the hotel in Portland Street the call handler gave her friend advice over the phone.

Stacey pulled her baby from the toilet (BBC)

"Make sure the cord is not wrapped around the baby's neck. Watch the baby closely for three minutes then tie the cord with a string or shoelace," she told her.

"Tie the string tightly around the umbilical cord about six inches from the bay, but do not cut it."

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Paramedic Jon arrived at the hotel to find the patient in the bathroom clutching her newborn baby and the new mother explained she had no idea she was pregnant - she had even been to the doctor that morning.

Baby Elizabeth (BBC)

She explained: "I've had like, really bad back pain. The next thing I know I'm pushing and then I can feel like a head on me.

"I've been at the doctor's today cos I have got like a bump but they've said 'so the pregnancy test said no, negative.' So they were like 'we'll test you to see if you've got a cyst or anything.'"

Asked if her daughter had cried straight away she replied: "No, she was in the toilet and I had to pull her out.

"I put her into the sink and then she started trying to cry and then she cried."

Stacey had no idea she was expecting (BBC)

Jon cut the cord in the hotel room and as he continued to treat both the mum and her baby, who he suggested she should name after Harry Potter character Hermoine Granger.

But he was concerned that Stacey had a potentially life-threatening blood clot.

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In the ambulance en-route to St Mary's Hospital Stacey told Jon that she was naming her daughter Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was born at the Britannia Hotel (BBC)

From the hospital Jon reported back to the call centre that she had a postpartum haemorrhage, excessive bleeding following the birth of a baby, and her boyfriend had been told and was on his way over from Leeds to see Stacey and baby.

At the end of the programme it was explained that had Stacey made a full recovery.

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