Saturday Kitchen Matt Tebbutt’s heartbreaking health | UK News

Saturday Kitchen host Matt Tebbutt has turn out to be a weekend fixture for hundreds of thousands of viewers, but away from the comfort of BBC studios the chef has confronted a string of health struggles that have compelled him to rethink his lifestyle. The 51-year-old presenter, who took over the Saturday morning slot in 2016 following James Martin’s departure, is understood for his laid-back humour and ardour for food.

Yet Matt has admitted that behind the grins he has endured critical medical ordeals – from life-saving surgical procedure to battles with ageing and power.

Matt’s most horrifying health scare got here in 2022 when he was rushed into hospital for an emergency appendectomy. Treated at The Grange Hospital in Cwmbran, he later shared a photograph from his mattress hooked up to a morphine drip, telling followers he was “so grateful” for the NHS workers who appeared after him.

“Me, a morphine drip and an emergency appendectomy are keeping me from a much-anticipated lunch,” he wrote, praising the “brilliant” workforce who handled him.

Fellow TV chef Anna Haugh later described the ordeal as “really serious,” noting how shortly Matt bounced back. Astonishingly, he returned to work on Saturday Kitchen just two weeks later. Matt himself joked that as a freelancer, “if I’m laying in the hospital bed then I ain’t being paid, so I need to get up.”

The 12 months before, Matt revealed another surprising health issue – a nasty cat chew that despatched him twice to Nevill Hall Hospital in Abergavenny for treatment. Appearing on air with his finger bandaged, he made sure to thank NHS workers, calling them “absolute angels” and praising their care.

Now in his early fifties, Matt has admitted that preserving up with the hectic tempo of TV life, household, and social commitments has turn out to be more tough. Speaking on Gabby Logan’s podcast The Mid-Point, he confessed: “I’m losing the battle.”

“I want to do this, go to this party and then do three days on the trot at a festival,” he explained, “but at 51 I realise it’s quite draining.” The experiences have led him to slow down, reassess his priorities, and make vital modifications to his daily routine.

Determined to take control of his health, Matt has overhauled his diet and habits. He has cut back closely on alcohol, swapped crisps for nuts, avoids an excessive amount of bread, and now prepares contemporary sauces and meals at home. He also tracks his blood sugar ranges to see how different meals have an effect on him – discovering, for instance, that sushi rice could cause surprising glucose spikes.

Regular gymnasium visits are another half of his plan, with Matt focusing on free weights twice a week to preserve strength after years of enjoying rugby in his youth.

Matt has been open about the toll his earlier years in restaurant kitchens took on him, describing life as a pub proprietor as “relentless.” Selling The Foxhunter in 2015 allowed him to put full focus into tv, a transfer he now sees as very important for his health as nicely as his profession.

Saturday Kitchen airs Saturdays at 9.30am on BBC One.