Former EastEnders star James Bye's youngest child rushed to hospital 'screaming' after eating poisonous plant berries
James Bye and his wife Victoria Bye's youngest child Rufus spent the night in hospital after he accidentally ate the "seriously toxic", "bright orange" berries that rew on an Italian Arum plant in the couple's garden.
James Bye's son was rushed to hospital "screaming" after he snacked on a poisonous plant
The former EastEnders star and his wife Victoria Bye's youngest child Rufus, two, accidentally ate the "seriously toxic", "bright orange" berries that grew on an Italian Arum plant in the couple's garden.
Minutes after Rufus ate the berries, his tongue "started to swell", and it prompted James and Victoria to call 999.
Following an overnight stay in Accident and Emergency (A+E), Rufus is doing well as he rests up in the family's caravan - which is where the Byes now live after they sold their "forever home" in June 2025 - and Victoria has urged parents to watch their tots when they are playing outside.
Taking to Instagram, the concerned mum - who also has sons Edward, eight, Louis, six, and Hugo, three, with James - said: "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.
"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."
She continued: "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."
Victoria initially could not decide whether or not to share Rufus' accident with her Instagram followers.
However, she felt it was right to speak about the ordeal to prevent other children from eating berries on plants and to avoid parents getting into a state of panic.
She ended her lengthy post with: "I debated whether I should post this serious mum fail ... but if it could help anyone else avoid a night in A+E then share away ...
"And maybe double-check what's growing under that trampoline."
