Matt Baker opens up about health issue as he admits that it's 'upsetting'

31 March 2024 , 18:13

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Matt Baker spoke about his life on a recent episode of a podcast (Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Matt Baker has spoken about his health, suggesting that he is no longer "able to bend forward" after a back injury.

The presenter, 46 - known for fronting BBC shows like Blue Peter and Countryfile - made the remark on a recent episode of the Mid Point podcast. Matt spoke to podcast host Gabby Logan, 50, about various aspects of his life.

He told Gabby - whom he occasionally worked with on the One Show - that he "slipped a disc" in his back due to an incident in rehearsals for a pantomime. He's understood to have previously spoken about the experience. The host asked Matt, who is a former gymnast, at one point: "Are you still doing backflips?" He responded: "No, I can't now. I've injured my back." He went on to tease: "This is midlife - talking about your aches and pains!"

He added: "I did my back in. I was doing a panto. I was doing Goldilocks and the Three Bears and we were practising with the stunt chairs, and the chair wasn't set correctly and bang! I went down on my coccyx and it turns out I slipped a disc in my back."

Matt said: "I've done everything I can to try to get it right like through training and rehab and everything. I've had to go do the injections thing…" Gabby then teased that he lives with a physiotherapist, referencing his wife Nicola Baker.

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Matt Baker (pictured) spoke about his life and career whilst a guest on a recently released episode of Gabby Logan's the Mid Point podcast (BBC Studios/Pete Dadds)

The guest responded on the podcast: "I know, exactly - so we tried all that. Went for the nerve block [injection]." Matt further commented: "I can't tell you how upsetting it is as an ex-gymnast, not to be able to bend forward."

Gabby suggested that he would "get that mobility back though," but Matt responded: "Well, I don't know. It doesn't hurt when I bend [forward]. I'm trying my hardest to try and keep fit with a bad back, and those are the challenges as you get older I think. [...] But I'm trying, I'm trying. You have to do a lot more exercise as you hit midlife."

Matt is understood to have previously discussed the apparent injury in an interview with the Daily Mail last year. He told the outlet that he had a "herniated disc" which still hadn't been "repaired," before suggesting that the panto role had involved walking on tightropes, riding unicycles and juggling.

He said that the performances got progressively "more difficult," adding: "By Christmas Day [that year] I couldn't get out of bed. It was horrendous, absolute agony. We did presents in the bedroom." Matt added that despite his wife's supportive approach, it was his "worst" Christmas to date.

Joel Leaver