Sir Ian McKellen says he’s “feeling weak physically” after falling off stage.
The beloved 85-year-old actor has opened up about his health issues two months after falling off stage at the Noel Coward theatre in London’s West End. The star has admitted he now struggles to remember the name of his best friend.
The legend was playing John Falstaff in Player Kings when he plunged head first into the audience during a fight scene. He was rushed to hospital and left with a fractured wrist and a chipped vertebrae after the horrifying incident.
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McKellen has now revealed he has memory issues. He told BBC Breakfast: “I forget names… When you’re older you’ve got more to remember than people who are young. Nevertheless, it’s a nuisance when you can’t remember your best friend’s name or forget your telephone number.”
(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images for The Wolseley Hospitality Group)
The two-time Oscar nominee has cancelled further performances of the play but is determined to keep working at 85 and plans on returning to work next year. He said: “What else would I be doing if I wasn’t working? I shall take the rest of the year off and then get back to work in January. Just keep at it as long as the legs and the lungs and the mind keep working.
(Image: Hoda Davaine/Dave Benett/Getty Images)
McKellen told Big Issue he has been “left feeling weak physically” and is doing exercise to improve his fitness. “Of course, it’s emotional,” he said. “We all trip all our lives, it’s just when you get to my age you can’t always get up again. I’m just trying to convince myself it was an accident.”
He revealed last month how a fat suit he was wearing on stage during his accident in June saved him from sustaining more injuries. He said: “My chipped vertebrae and fractured wrist are not yet healed.
(Image: X80001)
“I avoid going out because I’m nervous someone might bump into me, and I’ve been dealing with agonising pains in my shoulders due to the jolt my body took. But the fat suit I wore for Falstaff saved my ribs and other joints, so I consider myself lucky.”
Sir Ian wants to return as Gandalf in a new Lord of the Rings film set for 2026, titled The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. It would mark his first appearance as the wizard in 12 years.
Sir Ian told the BBC: “Well, I’ve had some indication from the powers that be, Gandalf will make an appearance, and I’m not letting anybody else put on the pointy hat and beard if I can help it.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
