Paul Whitehouse has revealed that he has been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, prompting him to abandon his long-standing chocolate habit as he focuses on staying healthy.
The 68-year-old Gone Fishing star and his co-host Bob Mortimer, 67, recently admitted that they are “a lot iller than we look” while discussing how much longer they may be able to continue their popular series.
Speaking about his health before the new series aired, Whitehouse said: “I sort of was diagnosed that I’ve crept into Type 2 diabetes area.
“I think with my lifestyle and our age, I think it’s quite common, actually. I could probably have reduced it by cutting out the Maltesers, which I’ve done.”
Asked whether he still experienced his famous “chocolate frenzies”, Whitehouse replied: “No. I have two bits of dark chocolate that’s basically torture and not chocolate.”
Mortimer then recalled just how intense his co-star’s cravings could become. He said: “One night when we were fishing, I saw you on top of the kitchen wall cabinets looking for it!”
Paul Whitehouse has revealed his Type 2 diabetes diagnosis and says he has given up chocolate to protect his health
Whitehouse admitted: “All my clothes were off, and I was just in a fury trying to find chocolate!
“We’d been fishing in the day, we’d gone down to that little lake in the grounds and caught some big trout, remember? And I thought I deserved a reward, a chocolate reward, but there was no chocolate in the house, and I went mad.
“Now I don’t have that. Anyway, I’ve cut almost all sugar out, and I’m also prescribed some medication for it.”
Mortimer also discussed his own efforts to improve his fitness, saying he has been exercising at home while watching television.
He said: “I’ve been once [to the gym]! But on my first visit, I hurt my toe.”
Whitehouse responded: “You didn’t tell me this! You’ve been styling it out like you’re there every day in, day out, with ‘kettlebell this’ and all that.”
Mortimer explained: “No, I’ve got my kettlebells and weights at home, and I sit watching the telly doing exercises. I’ve really been working on it.”
The pair have previously spoken openly about their serious health problems. Mortimer underwent emergency triple heart bypass surgery in 2015, while Whitehouse had three coronary stents fitted that same year.
Those health scares ultimately helped inspire Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, which debuted in 2018 after Mortimer’s wife, Lisa Matthews, became concerned that he was slipping into depression and encouraged Whitehouse to take him fishing.
The BBC series has now reached eight seasons, but Mortimer has warned that advancing age could eventually put an end to their fishing adventures. “If we did the show for long enough and became decrepit then one day we might catch a pike and the pike will drag us in,” he said.
In an interview with The Sunday Times Culture, he added: “And I don’t mind ageing Paul, but I’d hate it if we couldn’t come fishing any more and that’s not far off Paul, that’s not far off.”
Whitehouse said: “There’s no mucking around with heart issues. You are there and if you’re not careful you’re gone. And Bob and I had threatened to fish for ages so we thought we better get on with it for both our sakes.”
Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse have described themselves as “iller than they look” while expressing concerns about the future of Gone Fishing
Bob explained that he had ignored the warnings of his health issues as he just thought he was ‘out of breath’ while playing with his sons Harry, 29, and Tom, 28.
He said: ‘We’re a lot iller than we look. When I look back on it, I just thought I was getting breathless when playing football with my sons…
‘I just put it down to old age because I was in my early 50s. But you should not be out of your breath in your 50s. That is the sniper’s alley decade for heart attacks.’
He discovered his need for surgery during a pre-tour check-up, when a doctor immediately referred him to a cardiologist who told him that some of his arteries were between 95-98% blocked – landing him in surgery days later.
Bob said: ‘He told me that if I’d gone on tour I would have probably died on stage in Southampton. The overpowering feeling was one of fear…
‘I was very scared. I convinced myself that it would be absolutely life-changing. I don’t suppose I thought I was going to die, although they give you the warning that everyone gets before an operation.’
Speaking about how Paul helped him with his mental recovery through fishing, he said: ‘When you’ve had the operation – especially that big cut down your chest – you feel very vulnerable, even going out into the street…
The comedy duo spoke to The Sunday Times Culture about their health woes, including Bob’s emergency triple heart bypass surgery in 2015, above
‘I was sat about a bit. It’s true that the only voice in my life telling me to get out of the house was Paul Whitehouse. He was very insistent and very persistent…
‘He was the first person I opened up to apart from my wife about the journey. And there’s that lovely thing about fishing. If I’d gone for a drink with Paul, all we’d have done is try to make each other laugh…
‘But when you go to the riverbank you make each other laugh and there’s still six hours left and you do get a bit reflective and I started to dare to ask Paul about his rehab. We both support each other with it.’
In 2022, Bob said he had a ‘very, very unhealthy year’ that left him with a ‘terrible feeling’ when his rheumatoid arthritis returned after 29 years.
His later contraction of shingles led to his worst health crisis, as he said of having the virus: ‘It was worse than my heart period.’
Shingles is a painful viral infection caused by the reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus – the same virus that causes chickenpox.
