AceShowbiz - Actress and comedienne Whoopi Goldberg is mourning the death of her mother, who tragically passed away in August after suffering a stroke. Goldberg, who had been appearing in the London theater production of "Sister Act", cut short her run on August 27 to fly back to the U.S. after discovering her ailing mother Emma had suffered the health crisis.

The actress, who starred in the 1992 movie that inspired the West End musical, was due to headline the West End show until the end of August. But the 54 year old's summer ended on a sad note - her mother passed shortly after Goldberg returned Stateside. Revealing the news on the season premiere of her U.S. chat show "The View" on Tuesday, September 7, she told viewers, "My mum passed on the 29th of August."

She went on to pay a touching tribute to her mum, a teacher, calling her "one of the best people I think I've had the privilege of knowing", adding "I don't think she quite realized how many lives she touched. She was an extraordinary woman."

But Goldberg assured fans close family ties are helping her to cope with the tragedy. She continued, "My brother and I were very, very lucky to have her in our lives. And so, I'm not sad because she had a great time... I think I'm just sad sometimes because I think who will love me the way that she did? But I realized that my brother and I have each other so we're OK."