Category Entertainment News

Michael Barrymore reached out to fans for support in a heartbreaking TikTok video in which the comedian and TV presenter told of his mini strokes and “uncontrollable seizures”

Veteran TV presenter Michael Barrymore has been diagnosed with epilepsy at 73 – after experiencing a mini stroke.

The host, known for his work on game shows and light entertainment programmes, told fans on TikTok about his “uncontrollable seizures” which have happened as a result of his epilepsy. Epilepsy, a tendency to have repeated seizures which start in the brain, is often diagnosed in younger years but Michael said he has developed it in his 70s.

And the star, who headlined the Royal Variety Performance in 1993, thanked fans for their support. In his emotional TikTok, Michael said: “A mini stroke caused me to develop epilepsy where I have uncontrollable seizures… I suffer from cluster seizures, which affects a quarter of people with epilepsy. It means I have more than one, usually three individual seizures in a short period of time.”

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Now Michael, who grew up in Bermondsey, southeast London, must take emergency medication if he goes into a seizure. He continued: “It’s scary because there’s a 40% chance of going into epilepticus which causes brain damage and death without prompt medical attention.

“I’ve had several attacks this year and have emergency medication at home if I go into a seizure. It doesn’t really affect my life otherwise, but it would be nice to talk with other sufferers on here about it.”

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The entertainer, an unlikely icon for Gen Z with his TikToks and vlogs, shared a series of photographs of himself in hospital. His video has been watched widely across TikTok and may users have left Michael messages of support.

Michael’s stint on Celebrity Big Brother in 2006 – during which he came runner-up to model Chantelle Houghton – was his first major TV gig since his dismissal from ITV in 2003. This came following the death of Stuart Lubbock in 2001 following a party at Michael’s home in Essex.

But since the controversy, Michael has become extremely popular with Gen Z, particularly through his use of TikTok. He used it last year to poke fun at himself and he reflect on his past while celebrating his birthday.

X Factor alum Honey G is back with a brand new tune and took to social media to showcase her dance moves alongside TV presenter Hayley Palmer

Former X Factor star Honey G has shown off her impressive weight loss as she shared her latest song release. The rapper, 44, rose to fame on the popular ITV talent show in 2016.

She has since candidly revealed she has struggled with her weight previously. However, she has now proudly confessed that she has dropped from a size 18 dress size to a size 12 – and claims it has upped her “body confidence”.

Honey, whose real name is Anna Gilford, was seen dancing to her new track titled Nothing To Me on a roof terrace in London. She was alongside TV presenter Hayley Palmer. It comes as the full Strictly Come Dancing lineup has been confirmed.

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Honey shared the clip on Instagram. She captioned the upload: “Our take on the Nothing to Me dance. Mine & @hayleypalmer_presenter ‘s rendition – my new single – dropping this Saturday!” She also added the hashtags “shake your booty” and “bootylicious”.

In the video, Honey wore a small pair of floral-patterned shorts and a vest top. She also donned an oversized pair of sunglasses as she danced to the tune.

Fans were quick to praise the star for her fun post. One user in the comments section gushed: “honey g your [sic] still an icon.” They added two flame emojis.

Another user also added a comment of four flame emojis, while another added: “Aww check yooooo,” with a raised hands emoji.

The TV personality previously explained she had “changed her body” after a series of gym routines during the Covid pandemic. She added she had also taken up running.

Speaking to Daily Star in 2023, the musician said: “I had a personal trainer for a year and a half, almost two years and we worked a lot on strength training and I started to see, coupled with all the running I was doing, I started to see my body change.”

Honey confessed at the time: “That’s why not a lot of people recognise me in the street anymore, it says online I’m unrecognisable which is true.

“But yeah, I’m not saying I miss being chased through a shopping centre by school kids, but seriously, in all honesty, when I started to see body shape change, it spurred me on even more.”

She also told Closer magazine: “I used to wear loose and baggy clothes that went up to a size 18, but I’ve thrown most of them away as my taste has matured. Now I wear outfits I wouldn’t have dreamt of wearing, and I can fit into nice underwear from Victoria’s Secret.”

Despite not being a regular on television these days, Honey G has kept herself busy. She has been seen performing at clubs and festivals throughout the UK.

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X Factor contestant Rylan Clark has revealed he is ‘proud’ of former judge Tulisa Contostavlos for releasing her first book as she detailed her drug scandal and suicide attempts

Former X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos has received the support of ex-contestant Rylan Clark as she opened up on her challenging time in the spotlight. The N-Dubz singer revealed she attempted suicide after being deceived in a sting operation by ‘Fake Sheikh’ Mazher Mahmood.

She was charged with supplying class A drugs but the case was eventually dismissed as it emerged that Mahmood had lied to the court. Tulisa has also revealed she found herself in a “toxic” relationship during the time of the trial, which she shares in her new book, Judgement: Love, Trials, and Tribulations.

The star revealed her “year from hell” and led her to attempt to take her own life not once, but twice. It comes after Darius Danesh’s ex-wife speaks out after pop star died after refusing operation.

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Her emotional new book, Judgement: Love, Trials, and Tribulations, opens with Tulisa sitting drunk on the floor of her bathroom after finding out that she’s going to be charged with being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs at 11pm on a Friday.

Since its release this week, Tulisa has been supported by fellow X Factor star and friend Rylan. He shared a sweet snap of him sat on a striped sofa with his arm around Tulisa as he heaped on the praise for her candid book.

The TV and radio star gushed: “Never been prouder @tulisacontostavlos. From 2012 to now we’ve been through a lot and I’m so proud we stayed by each others side.

“Now it’s time for everyone to know your truth. We’ve never publicised it, we’ve just been there for eachother. I’m so happy your words will now be heard by everyone. Tulisa’s book Judgement is out now x #Day1 x.”

Tulisa responded as she told Rylan: “Love you will all my heart you beautiful earth angel.” He was there to celebrate with Tulisa at a Q and A session for her memoir as he interviewed the singer.

The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! star threw the support back to Rylan following the event as she said: “@Rylan when the whole industry turn their back on me you screamed my truth when I couldn’t speak from the roof tops.

“Love you forever. Thanks for being you and supporting me during the hardest time of my life.” Tulisa appeared on This Morning on Thursday, where she harrowingly detailed the extent of her pain.

She revealed that she attempted suicide twice after the ordeal. “The first attempt was quite light in a sense…I was very drunk and I wasn’t sure, just go for it, I’ve had enough,” she said.

“It was the second time that after the trial had finished then I had time to really process everything that happened was the real kicker. Surviving that was a miracle,” she said.

When asked how she is now, she said: “I don’t think I’ll ever trust in the same way again but I am someone who has a logical head on their shoulders. I hope for the best in people I’m not a negative person, I’m not looking for negative things in someone.

“I’ve been very blessed through his experience to have a very strong team of loving individuals who really became my soul family and remain that to this day. If anything, I gained love through this process. Big shout out to my family at home who have been absolute rocks for me.”

*If you’re struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch

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Good Morning Britain host Kate Garraway surrounded herself by her pals as she lifted a drink to her late husband Derek Draper following his tragic death last year aged 56

Kate Garraway has marked her late husband Derek Draper’s birthday by raising a toast alongside her pals. The Good Morning Britain host, 57, has been open about the difficulties she has faced following her husband’s death.

Derek sadly died in January last year at the age of 56, nearly four years after battling complications from Covid-19. Following his death, Kate shared an emotional tribute, revealing that she had stayed by his side during his final moments.

She had opened the doors of their home to film crews, who documented her life as she juggled being a carer, mum and TV star. It comes after Darius Danesh’s ex-wife speaks out after pop star died after refusing operation.

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Kate was supported by her pals as she marked Derek’s 58th birthday. The group beamed for a selfie together as Kate raised a glass up to the camera.

She was joined by BBC Radio 6’s Chris Hawkins, meteorologist Clare Nasir and her manager Vickie. “Happy 58th birthday, Derek Draper…Cheers to you. We miss you x,” Vickie said.

Kate re-shared the photo to her own social media account and her 1.3million followers. She heartbreakingly shared the sad news of Derek’s death last year.

“It breaks my heart to say that my wonderful husband Derek has passed away,” she wrote in a heartfelt post. “He spent his last days surrounded by family, and I held his hand through those final hours.”

Since Derek’s death, Kate has been candid about her financial burden as well as difficulties of parenting daughter Darcey, 19, and son William, 15, solo.

During a discussion on Good Morning Britain, she revealed that the cost of Derek’s round-the-clock care left her in overwhelming debt. “At the time of his passing, we had two unresolved appeals for funding, but they just kept getting delayed,” she said.

“I’m fortunate to have a well-paying job, but even with that, I had to cover all the costs myself. Now I’m left with an unmanageable amount of debt. If I’m in this position, how are other families supposed to cope?”

In March, Kate shared how parenting alone has been her most challenging aspect of Derek no longer being there. Speaking to Daily Mail Weekend Magazine, Kate said: “This is the hardest part of grieving.

“There are so many moments where I just think, ‘Derek, where are you?’” She reflected on how parenting had always been a shared responsibility between them, something they did instinctively without assigning strict roles.

“Now, I have to take on everything – the fun parent, the one keeping everyone on track, and the one panicking, yelling, ‘Oh my God, you’re going to fail everything!’” she admitted. “I make so many mistakes, but don’t we all? Is there really such a thing as a perfect mother?”

Kate also shared how she is hit by a “tsunami of sadness” in the middle of the night as she wakes up panicking thinking she hasn’t given Derek his medicines.

“Being a carer, its joys and its responsibilities, stays with you even after you have lost the person,” she wrote in a piece for The Sun. “I still wake up in the middle of the night panicking that I haven’t given him his medicine, or that I have forgotten to move him every hour to prevent the painful contractions in his limbs.

“The next second I realise he no longer needs that care. There is a moment of relief — that I did not let him down — before a tsunami of sadness hits.”

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The former Chelsea midfielder was forced to temporarily step back from football in 2019 after receiving a painful diagnosis

Footballer Fran Kirby has spoken out about her frightening experience of pericarditis, after experiencing symptoms similar to indigestion. The athlete, who played for England’s Lionesses for 11 years, thought it spelt the end of her career and took time to recover in 2019.

“It’s quite a sudden and dramatic story, to be honest,” the former Chelsea midfielder told the Mirror in an exclusive interview. “I was just at home, having dinner and with my two teammates, and I went to take a sip of Coke Zero, and then it just all of a sudden just got really, really bad chest pains.

“And it kind of felt a little bit like indigestion, but it was like 300 times worse than what I was used to. And I sat there for a couple of seconds thinking, ‘Okay, like, is this going to pass? Is it going to go away?’ And it just never did.

“And then I started to panic and get a little bit kind of frantic around the table. And I was just kept saying, ‘I don’t feel well. I don’t feel well, there’s something wrong.'”

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In a matter of moments, Fran was overcome with dizziness and collapsed on the floor. Paramedics rushed to her aid and, while they initially said everything looked fine, a doctor wasn’t quite convinced.

“The pain in my chest was so extreme – it literally felt like someone was trying to pull it out,” Fran continued. “I was really fatigued leading up to it, but as an athlete, that’s normal. It wasn’t until the chest pain hit that I knew something was seriously wrong.

“He got me seen by a cardiologist, and that’s when I was diagnosed with pericarditis.” Pericarditis is an inflammation of the heart’s outer lining, affecting roughly 28 in every 100,000 people each year, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Whilst it’s curable and not usually serious, it can give rise to several complications and is generally accompanied by incredibly debilitating symptoms. For Fran, this not only included chest pain but severe fatigue that even made climbing the stairs difficult.

In light of this, she had no choice but to step away from football for several months. She described this as the ‘hardest thing’, entirely stripping her of her identity.

“I’d always seen myself as Fran, the footballer,” the 32-year-old added. “I thought, ‘Give it a couple of weeks and it’ll be fine. I’ll be ready to go.’ And the doctor said, ‘No, no, no, you need to take this quite seriously. You can’t push yourself until you’re ready to do so.’

“So, I think once I got through the early stages and I still was feeling quite poorly, I thought, ‘Okay, this is going to be a long time now.”

After a course of anti-inflammatory medication and a lengthy recovery period, Fran eventually resumed playing football, returning in time to make the Lionesses’ winning EURO 2022 squad.

She retired from the Lionesses in June this year but is still deemed ‘one of the most recognisable faces of England’s rise’, boasting 79 caps and 19 goals across her international career. She also signed for Brighton & Hove Albion in July 2024.

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Reflecting on the whole ordeal, Fran said she’s now far more conscious of her well-being and is keen to stress that not everyone with heart issues looks how you might expect them to.

“Being a healthy athlete who trained since I was five years old, I never felt that I would ever have a problem with my heart,” she continued. “Luckily, I’m back to full health now. I’m training just as hard as I used to, and don’t need ongoing treatment.

“…I’m so much more aware of the power of keeping track of my health. As an athlete and as a person, knowledge is power. To understand what’s going on inside and understand why you’re feeling a certain way, and to just not suffer.

“I think for so many years, so many people just accept that it’s normal to feel illness or pain when actually, it might be something that you can get help with. To understand your body is one of the most powerful things you can do.

“That’s why I’m taking part in the On the Ball campaign with Bluecrest, because I think ongoing monitoring is just so important to help you understand your health and potentially prevent something that could make you very ill. I’ve had my first Bluecrest health assessment, and I’m even more into my health stats now!”