Eamonn Holmes' health struggles have been widely reported this year. On 3 September, the presenter was seen in a wheelchair at Wembley Stadium. This shocking image follows a long list of difficult moments for Holmes.
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In 2021, the presenter opened up about his back pain which led him to use a walking stick. In 2022, Holmes underwent back surgery in order to try and ease his pain but fate had other plans. Two weeks after being operated on, Eamonn Holmes fell down the stairs. He broke his shoulder and his legs, already impacted by his back pain, were weakened further.
In September 2023 Holmes gave a worrying update and revealed that he ‘can't run, can't walk, can't do anything except watch TV and eat.’
Eamonn Holmes’ mental health struggles
All these health issues have had an impact on Eamonn Holmes’ mental health. Daily Record reports that Holmes admitted that being in a wheelchair and not being able to walk has been really ‘frustrating’.
In an interview teasing his upcoming live event the presenter said:
People think it’s my knees or hips but it’s not, it’s the discs in my back. I had an operation to take the pain away but the operation has affected my legs and I don’t have any power in them.
I’m sitting in a wheelchair now. I can walk 30 or 40 steps but it’s momentous to do things like get out of a car.
He also admitted that he struggles with his mental health.
It can be very depressing mentally as well as physically but I just have to push myself because what’s the alternative?
Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford’s funeral plans
Among the ongoing health updates, Eamonn Holmes has tackled a new topic: his funeral plans.
The subject came up on Tuesday 17 October when he was interviewed by friend and Loose Women host Coleen Nolan as part of the Mirror’s campaign with Co-op funeral care. The point of this campaign is to ‘make people more comfortable talking about death and funeral wishes’.
In the interview, Eamonn talked about how his wishes and his wife’s differ. He said:
We have a family plot in Belfast where my mum and dad are and there’s room for four more others. Ruth would rather be somewhere anonymous in Surrey.
He added:
She wants to be cremated and I don’t want to be cremated. She doesn’t care - she’s not religious, and she’s not interested in sentimentality.
On top of those details, Eamonn Holmes revealed that he has very specific wishes about his funeral.
I am quite clear about what I want. I want people to be dressed in black, like a uniform
I want crying. I want incense over my coffin for the Requiem Mass in Belfast in the church where I was baptised
And then I’ve got my brothers… they would carry my coffin. I like traditional old church music and I’d like Malachi Cush to sing some stuff.
I would also like a record or an Elvis impersonator to sing as the final song, Bridge Over Troubled Water. I think it is a great song to reflect on. As long as the priest finishes the Mass and we go down the aisle, we can sing it at the end.
All these thoughts about his own funeral might be linked to his health issues - the very problems that kept him from attending his mother’s funeral in November 2022.
I had this back problem, had an operation and then I fell down the stairs and broke my shoulder. Basically, I had two legs that didn’t work and a shoulder that didn’t. I physically couldn’t get out of bed. I had carers who would dress me. It was heartbreaking for me
Read more:
⋙ Eamonn Holmes criticises My Mum, Your Dad in a rant against former employee
⋙ Eamonn Holmes' exclusive tell-all interview: Will he keep his promise to address all controversies?
⋙ Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford: Everything we know about their intimate 26-year relationship
Sources:
Daily Record: Eamonn Holmes on his health issues: 'It can be very depressing mentally as well as physically'
Mirror: Eamonn Holmes says he won't be buried with wife Ruth when they die
Daily Mail: ‘Eamonn Holmes reveals he 'can't walk' and is 'not good' as he gives worrying health update... one year after spinal surgery and subsequent horrific fall’
Mirror: ‘Inside Eamonn Holmes' health battle from chronic pain to shingles as he uses wheelchair’
