Les Dennis was announced as the final celebrity for this year's Strictly Come Dancing on Friday – and following a health scare that forced him to reassess his lifestyle, he's feeling fitter than ever and ready to tackle the dancefloor.
The 69-year-old revealed that he has lost three stone over the last few years following an alarming visit to his doctor in which he was told he was pre-diabetic. What's more, Les only went for a check-up because a nasty bout of laryngitis in 2017 forced him to take a hard look at his health.
At the time, the actor was playing Uncle Fester in a touring production of The Addams Family. "I was wearing make-up and you can't go out and you order in Deliveroo and you just eat pizza," he told The Sun. "Wagamama's was a favourite and it meant that not only was I piling on the pounds, I was not getting any fresh air."
He added: "So, I was relieved in many ways that I got laryngitis because it gave me the biggest wake-up call and made me look at my health. I had to miss the last 10 weeks of the show. I've never done that. I was doing eight shows a week. It was like an alarm bell. I knew that I had to take stock of my health."
After Les visited his doctor and was told he was pre-diabetic, he was determined to overhaul his lifestyle, not just for his own sake, but for the sake of his children too. "Luckily, I caught it early enough to say, 'Right, here we go, I have to do something'. It has made me take responsibility for my own health.
"Being an older dad, I want to be there for my kids. I want to be here when I am 100," he explained. "They are the most important thing to me. I have to fulfil the responsibility to my kids." Les is a dad to three children, Phillip, 43, from his marriage to Lynn Webster, and daughter Eleanor, 15, and son Thomas, 12, who he shares with his third wife, Claire Nicholson.
Les Dennis weight loss
In a bid to transform his health, Les cut out alcohol and now follows the Mediterranean diet, which involves eating lots of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, seafood, beans, and nuts. He also began walking 10,000 steps a day and soon saw his weight drop from 15 stone to 12 stone.
"I was touching just under 15 stone, which I knew was too high — I am 5ft 9in — and I'm now able to get into my old clothes. I changed my diet and rather than eating white bread, I will go for rye or sourdough bread," he said.
"I have cut down on my meat intake, my sugar intake and I follow the Mediterranean diet, which has proven for people to have less diabetes and heart attacks."
Thankfully, his health overhaul meant his able to reverse his Type 2 pre-diabetes diagnosis, but he won't deprive himself of an occasional treat, admitting he is still partial to "the odd beer" and "occasional Magnum ice cream".