Paul Nicholls is recovering in a hospital in Thailand after a horrific accident left him trapped for three days with a broken leg. The former EastEnders star, who played Joe Wicks in the BBC show, plunged down a waterfall and was trapped in a rock pool without food or assistance. He had travelled on his own to the remote beauty spot on the island of Koh Samui, and the alarm was only raised when a local spotted his motorbike and alerted the police. After searching for hours, rescuers eventually found the actor, who was at the foot of Khun Si falls.
© Photo: RexPaul Nicholls is 'lucky to be alive' after his ordeal in Thailand
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At the time, Paul was semi-conscious and had hypothermia from his prolonged time in the water. He hadn't eaten for three days, and had also contracted a bug during his ordeal. "I am lucky to be alive," the TV star told the Sun. "I had a phone with me but I fell from such a height into the water it was unretrievable. It took such a long time to find me. It's an understatement to say it wasn't a great situation. It wasn't that I was lost. The problem was I couldn't move to get out of there." He added: "I've got a broken leg and I'm missing a kneecap. It needs complete reconstruction."
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A source told the newspaper that 38-year-old Paul had flown to Thailand a week ago because he is currently "between filming". The insider added: "He needs surgery. But it’s going to cost £90,000 for him to have it in Thailand. The British Embassy want to fly him back. They need to fly him to the mainland first to a proper hospital and then decide whether to bring him back to the UK or do the surgery there."
