Joel Dommett praises 'incredible' celeb pal after health battle
The Masked Singer host is getting ready for tomorrow's London Marathon and is running for a cause close to his heart that's helped his friend and mother-in-law
Joel Dommett has praised his 'incredible' friend Davina McCall for her strength following her brain tumour - as he gets ready to run the marathon in aid of the charity which helped her.
The Masked Singer host Joel, 39, is raising money for Brain Tumour Support, which helped show judge Davina, 57, who had a six-hour operation in November. She had a colloid cyst – a rare, fluid-filled benign tumour – and has just got the all clear. Joel said: 'She's just one of the most incredible, positive, beautiful people I know. The way she lived life before the operation was incredible. Now she's got a new lease for life.
"Me and Hannah love her and Michael so much. She's been like a sort of sister, mother, best friend to me. I'm so glad she's got through this crazy time and come out the other side.'
The charity is also close to Joel and wife Hannah's heart as it helped them cope when Hannah's mum had complications from a brain op five years earlier. He said they provided guidance and support when it felt everything was falling apart.
'So the least I can do is run 26 miles," says Joel.
Joel has run marathons before but found training this time tough as he juggled filming two new TV shows, his Happy Idiot tour and family life with Hannah, 35, and one-year-old son Wilde.
Hannah will be at the finish line for the first time and has given Joel an incentive to hit his target time of three hours. He said: 'She said at 1.05pm, if I've not crossed that line, she'll go. So I've got to get there otherwise that's my lift gone. She doesn't go back on a promise.'
Joel's training runs have been unusual, sprinting home from work when he can and dumping his clothes in a bush in Acton, West London. He said: 'I do need to go back and get them. I feel bad. I mean, essentially, it's littering.'
Joel, who started as a stand-up comic and on panel shows, became a household name as the runner-up in 2016's I'm A Celeb. He presented the spin-off Extra Camp, and landed his The Masked Singer gig in 2019 and also hosted sister show The Masked Dancer.
The BBC came calling with their series Survivor and Comic Relief and he's fronted the National Television Awards since 2021.
Joel says he should step back and enjoy his success. 'I really love what I do, it's a real pleasure and a privilege.
"Sometimes I don't allow myself to enjoy each job because I sort of move on to the next one. That's something I've learned from Davina, make sure you enjoy the moment and take it all in because what you're doing is quite special.'
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