Comedian Bob Mortimer fears he will never run again

The 64-year-old comedian had triple heart bypass surgery in 2015 and this year had the painful rash known as shingles, caused by the same virus as chickenpox.

Mortimer was also forced to give up playing football decades ago due to arthritis.

During a festive special episode of Mortimer And Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, where the pair travelled to Scotland for a Hogmanay episode and visited the rivers Dee, Tay and Ericht, he revealed how 2023 has been for him.

Mortimer told comedian Paul Whitehouse: “It’s been a very, very, very unhealthy year for me, Paul, with shingles.

“It was worst health period of my life to be honest. And you know what? It was worse than my heart period.”

In 2015, he had been due to go on tour with his comedy partner and Shooting Stars co-host Vic Reeves when the pair had to cancel the dates due to Mortimer requiring an operation on his heart.

Fast Show star Whitehouse, also an actor who appeared in 2017 satirical historical comedy The Death Of Stalin, said that Mortimer had endured “misery and pain in equal measure” over the last year.

Mortimer replied, saying: “Your nervous system, Paul, what even is it?… Some electricity of some sort going around?”

He added: “At the moment, me consultant (is) saying I’m heading for 80% muscle recovery in me leg, and she said: ‘You’ll just have to see what that means for you.’

“The muscles I’ve lost, I’ve lost, but other ones can compensate for it, do you know what I mean?”

Whitehouse asked if protein and exercise would help regain the muscles.

Mortimer replied: “I can make the other muscles stronger but I have a terrible feeling I’m never going to be able to run again, and you know how I used to like to run, Paul.”

The full episode is available on BBC iPlayer.