‘I knew that I had to take stock of my health’

Les Dennis previously opened up about receiving the “biggest wake-up call” after a worrying health scare.

The beloved actor has been a staple on screens for more than five decades. From stints on Coronation Street to Strictly Come Dancing, Les – who is on Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh today (October 5) – has remained booked and busy.

However, in 2017, Les suffered a health crisis and was given a worrying diagnosis by a doctor. So much so, that it resulted in him undergoing a major lifestyle change.


The actor suffered a health scare a few years back (Credit: ITV)

Les Dennis on his ‘biggest wake-up call’

Talking in 2023, Les opened up about his ill health a few years back and explained that at the time he was on tour playing Uncle Fester in a theatre show of The Addams Family.

The actor said that he was not only “piling on the pounds” but he was “not getting any fresh air” either due to the busy work schedule, performing two shows a day.

“So I was relieved in many ways that I got laryngitis because it gave me the biggest wake-up call and made me look at my health,” Les told The Sun.


Les changed his lifestyle ‘to be there for his kids’ (Credit: SplashNews.com)

‘I caught it early’

Les added: “I had to miss the last 10 weeks of the show. I’ve never done that. I was doing eight shows a week. It was like an alarm bell. I knew that I had to take stock of my health.”

The actor also shared that being a father to three children played a part in him changing his lifestyle to stay well for his kids.

He shares his eldest son Phillip with his first wife Lynne. Les’s daughter Eleanor was born in 2008, followed by son Thomas in 2011. He shares his two children with third wife Claire Nicholson.

Recalling a doctor’s diagnosis, Les said: “I went to get a check-up with a doctor and they said I was pre-diabetic. Luckily I caught it early enough to say: ‘Right, here we go, I have to do something.’

“It has made me take responsibility for my own health. Being an older dad I want to be there for my kids. I want to be here when I am 100. They are the most important thing to me.”