BBC presenter Richard Corrigan has revealed that chemotherapy "sucks you dry" while discussing his treatment for kidney cancer. The 62-year-old host of BBC Two's Great British Food Revival and multiple-time winner of BBC One's Great British Menu has been fighting the illness since his diagnosis in 2024.
Living with treatment
The chef, who prepared meals for the late Queen as well as other members of the Royal Family, continues to work in his restaurant empire but admitted: "You have to take the bad days with the good days, and enjoy the good days, that's for sure. The bad days are - as with anyone's illness - utter exhaustion and tiredness. And the good days...you have plenty hours in you to go and enjoy yourself."
He told the Sunday Independent: "Chemo doesn't affect your mind; it affects your body. Your battery always feels like it is just about to collapse. It's your energy battery, I'm talking your energy within your system."
Treatment progress
On a positive note: "It is holding things at bay. It is the finger in the dam, isn't it, really, the chemo? It stops the dam bursting."
The award-winning culinary expert won two Michelin stars throughout his career, one for Fulham Road in 1994 and one for Lindsay House in Soho in 1997.
Diagnosis and surgery
His wife of 35 years spotted changes in his energy levels and sleeping habits which led him to book a private scan. It uncovered a large tumour on one of his kidneys and just three weeks later he underwent a complex, seven-hour surgery at the Royal Free Hospital in London to remove the tumour.
Since then he has been receiving ongoing chemotherapy and specialist treatment at St Bartholomew's Hospital.
Lifestyle changes
He also said that his diagnosis has forced a shift in his lifestyle, particularly regarding his eating habits. He has ditched alcohol entirely and is doing his best to maintain a healthy diet.
