Jeremy Clarkson has spoken of having to adapt to a new way of life after having “extremely urgent” heart surgery.
The former Top Gear host was recently fitted with two stents, which improve blood flow to the heart.
Clarkson, 64, who last year recorded the final episode of The Grand Tour for Amazon Prime Video, said he was not fazed by the operation, and that the prospect of abstaining from alcohol, and having to exercise and adopt a healthy diet, was his real fear.
In his column in the Sun, the broadcaster wrote: “If I go to a party, I must stand in a corner, nursing some refreshing elderflower juice, before going home at about 9.30. That’s terrifying too.”
Clarkson maintains a packed schedule, despite having retired from his car show with longtime collaborators Richard Hammond and James May. He owns a farm, a brewery and a pub, writes three newspaper columns and hosts the ITV gameshow Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Clarkson will have to cut out red meat, chips, butter, chocolate and “the interesting bit” in an egg. “I’ve had a week now to live in the new regime and it’s horrific,” he said.
He will also have to exercise, something his is not happy about, writing that he regards working out as “something you do when travelling from the car to the pub, or from the lunch table to the sitting room”.
Clarkson adds: “But apparently, when I’ve recovered from the operation, I must do more. I must even go on the sort of ‘walk’ where I end up back where I started. What’s the point of that?”
He dismissed the idea of stopping work, saying he would “carry on” and just change his diet.
Despite Clarkson’s opposition to the new regime, heart surgery had made him realise that he would like to stick around. “Last week, when the Grim Reaper poked his nose round the door, I decided that actually I quite fancied living a little bit longer. I want to see my grandchildren grow up. I saw the dawn this morning, and it was magnificent, so I’d quite like to see a few more of those, too.”
According to a study by the British Heart Foundation, more than 39,000 people in England died prematurely in 2022 of cardiovascular conditions, including heart attacks, coronary heart disease and stroke – an average of 750 people a week.