'Frightened of what the future holds'

Mr Pearce was infected through a blood transfusion

Timothy Pearce, infected with Hepatitis C after a hip replacement, fears he has been handed a "death sentence".

He is one of those covered by Monday's landmark judgement, and one of the few prepared to speak out.

Mr Pearce, an actor, was infected after a blood transfusion during the hip surgery in May 1991.

But he only found out about his condition four years later, through the "look-back" programme by the National Blood Authority.

He said: "I am frightened about what the future holds because of the risk of developing serious liver disease and because I am not confident that there will ever be a cure."

I feel bitter that I may have been given a death sentence

Timothy Pearce

Mr Pearce, 65, of Highgate, north London was at the High Court to hear the judgement.

He is one of 30 claimants who were infected on or after the beginning of April 1991 whose claims were settled shortly before the trial began.

The amount of damages the group will receive have yet to be decided.

Mr Pearce has appeared in the film Jesus of Nazareth, and in TV programmes such as Minder and EastEnders.

But he said that since he was diagnosed with Hepatitis C, he has not been able to find management because of problems with insurance.

'Lack of vitality'

He added: "I have not got anything like the energy or vitality that I had. I'm very susceptible to colds and flu and have had massive problems with my teeth which I never had before."

He added: "I am willing to try the interferon treatment that is now available to me, although I have been told it is likely to be very unpleasant and will last several months.

"I feel bitter that I may have been given a death sentence and that it could have been avoided by the introduction of a screening test that was in use in other countries."

Mr Pearce said: "Ever since the operation, I'd never really felt like myself but I couldn't really work out why.

"I have always been active, playing physically demanding acting roles and coaching football for school and amateur teams.

"Since the operation I have become increasingly tired and lethargic. I am not the person I was before."

He tried to go back to work in 1992 and 1995, and said that, without the infection, he would have been able to continue acting, which he said had been his life.