A FATHER who gave his daughter the gift of life by donating part of his liver says he simply did what needed to be done.

Lilly Beckett, who is 20 months old, now has part of her dad James’ liver in place of her own, to halt a rare condition which could have claimed her life before her fourth birthday.

The operations on both father and daughter were carried out by a specialist team at King’s College Hospital, London.

After two months of recovery, the family put on Halloween fancy dress at a party in Snodland to raise money for the Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, which has supported the family.

Mr Beckett, 52, a surveyor, said: “I don’t look at Lilly and think I saved her life.

“I just think that she was ill and as she got older she would have become more knowing about her condition. There was always the chance she could deteriorate, which is why I wanted to get it over and done with.”

Lilly was born with biliary atresia, in which the bile ducts get blocked, leading to irreversible liver damage.

She had an operation to correct the condition but that proved unsuccessful. Despite her spending several months on a donor list, none had been found.

So Mr Beckett and his wife Kirstey, 38, of Malling Road, Snodland, decided to have their blood types tested.

After Mr Beckett’s was found to be a match, the surgery was performed on September 8 by a team of surgeons, led by Prof Nigel Heaton, who carried out football legend George Best’s liver transplant.

Both father and daughter had to spend several days in intensive care, but were reunited a week later.

Mrs Beckett, said: “It was just the most emotional moment. Jim had to be wheeled up to the ward in a wheelchair. He started crying when he saw Lilly, the nurses started crying, I started crying and in the middle of it all there was Lilly happily playing with some toys.”

But just two weeks after returning home, Mr Beckett had to be rushed back to Kings College, when a complication set in. He began repeatedly vomiting and turned yellow because bile was not draining from his body. He spent another week being treated in King’s.

Lilly will need drugs for the rest of her life, but the family say any upheaval has been worthwhile to see the change in her.

“She is just so happy,” said Mrs Beckett. “She was never miserable before but she was quiet and did not eat much. We will never know what she felt like before the transplant.

“Now she has boundless energy, eats like a trooper and I love to hear her laughing. I also get more tantrums, but I really don’t mind.

“She is like a normal child and just so full of life. It brings a lump to our throats when we look at her.”

• This year the Beckett family, led by Lilly’s grandparents have raised nearly £4,000 for a charity which helps families cope with liver disease.

The Halloween Party at Snodland Working Men’s Club raised £1,320 for The Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, which was added to £2,400 raised from donations and a summer fete.

Gaynor Green and her partner James Adair, of Birling Road, Snodland, organised both events.

Miss Green said: “The charity has funded transplant co-ordinators at King’s who have been so helpful to us and we just wanted to do something to say thank you. I would also like to thank everyone who has made a donation.”