Comedian Vic Reeves, 67, was reportedly taken to hospital after collapsing on the dancefloor at a friend's wedding last weekend. The TV star, known for his double act with Bob Mortimer, apparently took 'a turn for the worse' after 'over-exerting himself' at the celebration in Poole, Dorset.
According to sources, the 67-year-old provoked 'serious concern' among fellow guests at the town's Hotel du Vin after a sudden change in his demeanour saw Reeves – real name Jim Moir – allegedly collapse in front of them.
Witness account of the incident
An insider from the event told The Daily Mail: 'Vic was telling jokes and entertaining people – and obviously everyone was hitting the bar as the party went on just as you'd expect.'
'But suddenly it appeared to take a bit of a turn for the worse – there was a commotion in the middle of the group and staff were being asked to call for an ambulance which turned out to be for Vic who wasn't looking at all well.'
They added that it 'all happened very quickly'. 'The next thing he was being wheeled out by paramedics. It all seemed to shift from lots of laughter to serious concern pretty fast.'
Health update and background
Vic was celebrating his friend's marriage in Poole with his wife Nancy Sorrell, 52; the couple married in 2003 and share 20-year-old twin daughters, Beth and Nell. Reeves' representative told the Mail of his recent collapse: 'He was checked over and given a clean bill of health.' Metro has also approached his representatives for comment.
In 2021, Reeves revealed he had gone completely deaf in his left ear, as a result of a benign brain tumour called a vestibular schwannoma, which starts in the nerve that connects the brain to the ear. 'It's the size of a grape. They just have to keep an eye on it. It's benign. They can't remove it. They can shrink it or just keep an eye on it, and that's what they are doing,' he explained on The Adam Buxton Podcast.
'I'd rather hear than not, but it's happened so you just get on with it don't you. I've got used to it.' Vestibular schwannomas, which are very rare at 6% of brain tumours and are also called acoustic neuromas, grow slowly over a number of years and do not spread to other parts of the body. They can cause hearing loss, tinnitus, dizziness, vertigo, difficulty in figuring out where sounds are coming from, and, in advanced cases, facial numbness.
Reeves says his means he struggles with the direction of sound, which impacts on one of his favourite hobbies with Nancy. 'I like to go out bird watching and I never know where the birds are. I can hear them but I don't know what direction they are. If an aeroplane flies over, or a car approaches, I don't know where it is,' he told Adam.
He and Nancy were photographed enjoying a boat trip around the harbour during their stay in Dorset, with binoculars around their necks. Reeves is best known for working with Mortimer, and the pair got together in the late 1980s on stage. They have also appeared on several programmes alongside one another, including panel show Shooting Stars and sketch shows which demonstrated their surreal style of humour. Their Channel 4 comedy show Vic Reeves Big Night Out in the early 90s marked the start of their TV success together.
