Latest news with #JimMyers
Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
The troubled early life of Hairy Bikers' Dave Myers: Star's widow Lili reveals how star battled childhood sickness, bullying and messy first marriage before his tragic death
He was beloved by millions of Hairy Bikers fans who expressed an outpouring of love after his death from cancer in 2024 aged 66. Now Dave Myers ' widow Lili has revealed he faced adversity in his early life as she detailed his childhood and early adulthood in her new memoir Dave & Me. Lili, who married Dave in 2011, recounted the late star's early years in the emotional book, including his battle with alopecia and his mother's health struggles with multiple sclerosis. Dave's mother Margaret was diagnosied with MS when he was just eight years old, forcing him and his father Jim to become her full-time carers. Lili wrote: 'Within a year of Margaret's diagnosis, she was in a wheelchair and, in time, became physically and mentally ravaged by illness and medication. 'Dave and his dad were her full-time carers which was an immense responsibility for a boy not yet ten. 'Social services eventually moved them to a ground-floor flat on a new council estate in Barrow and the family lived hand-to-mouth, surviving on Jim's pension money. There were many other challenges to contend with, but Dave found escape in music and painting, two more lifelong loves alongside bikes and food.' Dave had lost both his parents by the time he was 24, with Jim dying of a stroke and Margaret passing away in a care home four years later. The presenter also had to contend with bullying in school which occured after he was diagnosed with alopecia and lost his hair. 'Not many people know that Dave Myers, the Hairy Biker, was bald from childhood until his forties,' Margaret wrote. 'At a very young age he began to suffer with alopecia which made things extremely difficult for him, especially in school where he was already singled out for being a 'poor kid' thanks to his free meal tokens. He was a target for the bullies and those days were miserable for Dave, sapping his confidence and spirit.' Dave even believed his alopecia may have developed as a side effect of the stress of caring for his mother. It wasn't until Dave was in his forties that his hair started to grow back which came after a worrying health scare. Lili told how Dave was working on a film set as a makeup artist in Luxembourg in 1998 when he collapsed. Rushed to a German hospital, a scan revealed an arachnoid cyst on the left side of his brain which was thought to have been there since childhood because his brain had grown around it. 'Against advice from doctors and friends, he travelled in his van (driven by a colleague), back to his home in Aberdeenshire where he was admitted to the Royal Infirmary for an operation to install a shunt to relieve the pressure, plus drains to remove the fluid from the cyst itself,' Lili wrote. 'Thankfully, the surgery was a success and Dave was discharged just five days later on Christmas Eve, but his recovery took some unexpected turns. 'Not long after his op, Dave's hair started to grow in dark and healthy curls. I'm not medically trained and so this is just a hunch, but perhaps that cyst sitting undetected had been pressing on a certain part of the brain ... and maybe a combination of that and the stress of caring for his mum had triggered the alopecia in the first place? We'll never know for sure, but it makes sense to me. 'I could still feel the shunt on the left side of Dave's head when I met him seven years later, a testimony to a past I was not part of. Another life. 'One I only knew from pictures and Dave and his friends' endless stories. Oh, Dave was so proud of his hair once he had it back! He would wash it every day.' Prior to his fame with Simon King as part of the Hairy Bikers, Dave worked as a makeup artist for 23 years. He worked on several film sets and did the makeup of stars including Christoper Lambert, Sir Roger Moore, Dennis Hopper, Helen Mirren, Stephanie Beacham, Timothy West, Michael Parkin-son, Vanessa Redgrave and Jane Seymour. In 1987, Dave was working as a freelancer when he met his first wife Kate. They relocated to the northeast of Scotland, buying an apartment above a small shop in Huntly, Aber-deenshire and setting up an antiques business together. 'I'm not sure how happy those years were, but they must have loved each other and Dave spoke fondly about the fun he had running the shop, with him taking ad hoc makeup artistry work when he could throughout the year,' Lili wrote. But all was not well as Lili told how Dave returned home one weekend from a job in Darlington and found the shop, flat and his bank account emptied and Kate gone. 'Twisting the knife further was the discovery that she'd enlisted the help of Dave's unwitting best friend, Dr Dave Easton, to load the van under the guise of going to an antiques fair,' she wrote. 'Poor Dr Dave had no idea he was aiding and abetting Kate to clean Dave out and he felt terrible, although of course it wasn't his fault. It would be a source of humour between the two Daves throughout all the years that followed. 'Dave never saw Kate again after that and they only spoke once more to agree to an uncontested divorce. From what he told me, she felt unsettled living where they were, but the reality for Dave was now starting his life again from scratch.' Elsewhere in the book, Lili discussed Dave's cancer treatment, which she described as 'debilitating and ugly'. His treatment was so aggressive that he developed sores in his mouth and had to wear gloves due to nerve damage in his hands. 'It got to the point where he was too ill to speak; after each bout, one of the substances he was being given brought on a temporary speech impediment so he could not properly articulate words,' Lili wrote. 'He had sores in his mouth which meant he was unable to eat or drink and was suffering with such severe nerve damage in his hands that he had to wear gloves. 'He had it in his legs too, which affected his balance and ability to walk. I remember Si picked us up from the hospital one day and he was shocked at the state of Dave, who was a shadow of his former self.' Lili also described how difficult it was for Dave to lose his hair again whilst going through chemo. 'Losing his hair as a result of the chemo was incredibly painful for Dave given his history of alopecia and the regrowth following the surgery in 1998 for the arachnoid cyst. 'The decision to shave it all off was our way of taking control, which was psychologically beneficial, although it took him a while to get used to being bald again. 'He felt reduced to being only a cancer patient, stripped of his image, identity and personality, and with a face he no longer recognised.' She added: 'He told me how difficult he found it to love himself when he looked in the mirror because the physical change was so drastic. He thought he was hideous with no hair, no eyelashes and heavily stained teeth from chemo. 'He'd lost a lot of muscle mass which meant his skin sagged, the neuropathy in his hands and feet made them unbearably achy, and some fingernails and toenails had fallen off.' Lili first met the TV personality in 2005, while he was working on location in her native Romania. They became pen pals before establishing a romance, with Dave eventually becoming stepfather to her two children from a former relationship.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mon Power Deploys Aerial Saw to Trim Trees in Hard-to-Access Areas
Saw will trim along high-voltage transmission lines in 19 counties through end of year FAIRMONT, May 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) subsidiary Mon Power is using a helicopter equipped with an aerial saw to trim trees and ensure proper clearance around more than 230 miles of high-voltage power lines in its West Virginia service area. The work is expected to be completed by the end of this year. The aerial saw will be trimming along transmission lines located in Berkeley, Doddridge, Hampshire, Harrison, Jefferson, Mineral, Monongalia, Morgan, Nicholas, Pleasants, Pocahontas, Preston, Randolph, Ritchie, Tucker, Tyler, Upshur, Webster and Wood counties. Maintaining proper clearances around transmission lines and electrical equipment can help prevent or minimize the impact of tree-related power outages, especially those associated with severe weather during the summer and winter storm seasons. Clearing incompatible vegetation under power lines also gives company personnel easier access to inspect and maintain lines and make repairs quicker if an outage occurs. Jim Myers, President, West Virginia and Maryland: "Keeping our high-voltage power lines clear of potential interference is an important part of maintaining system reliability, and the aerial saw allows us to cover hundreds of transmission miles every year in a safe, efficient manner." Suspended on a boom beneath the helicopter and equipped with multiple 24-inch rotary blades, the aerial saw is typically deployed along transmission lines in areas that are environmentally sensitive or inaccessible to bucket trucks and other vehicles. This method of trimming typically covers more area in a day than a ground crew might complete in a week. The saw also eliminates the risk of injury to workers using bucket trucks or climbing trees to cut limbs near high-voltage equipment. The saw cleanly cuts tree limbs 8 to 10 inches in diameter, which fall straight to the ground propelled by air blasts from the helicopter rotors. Ground crews move limbs that have fallen onto roads, yards, agricultural fields or in streams. The ground crew will also flag and stop motorists along roads if the aerial saw is working nearby. The helicopter flies above and alongside transmission lines and may circle around to perform additional trimming. The pilot communicates with local airport personnel whenever the helicopter is operating within their air space. The helicopter and saw are owned and operated by Aerial Solutions and will work only as weather conditions permit. On the ground, contractors have trimmed trees along more than 1,700 miles of distribution power lines across the Mon Power service area. The company remains on track to complete an additional 3,500 miles of tree-trimming work by the end of the year. Mon Power serves about 395,000 customers in 34 West Virginia counties. Follow Mon Power at on X @MonPowerWV, and on Facebook at FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving more than six million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at and on X @FirstEnergyCorp. Editor's Note: Photos of workers trimming trees near FirstEnergy power lines are available for download on Flickr. B-roll of the aerial saw in action is available on YouTube. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Potomac Edison Provides Maryland Customers Programs and Tools to Manage Electric Bills
WILLIAMSPORT, Md., May 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Spring is in full swing, a welcome change after this winter's sub-zero temperatures. As spring turns to summer, energy use and costs can often increase as cooling systems work harder to keep homes comfortable. Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), is sharing tips and tools to help customers manage their energy use and budget during periods of high demand and all year long. Jim Myers, FirstEnergy President, West Virginia and Maryland: "We know that managing costs is important to our customers, and we're committed to arming them with the information and tools to help them take control of their energy budget. After a frigid winter that drove up electricity costs for many, we want to be sure customers are aware of the many options available to manage monthly electric bills and how to use energy wisely with the hot summer months around the corner." Programs and Tools to Manage Electric BillsThere are a variety of programs and tools that can help customers manage their energy budget or better use electricity throughout the home, including: Budget Billing: A budget billing plan can help customers better anticipate monthly energy costs and provide greater control over their energy budget. Known as the Average Payment Plan (APP), budget billing spreads out annual costs across all 12 months to help even out seasonal highs and lows and make monthly bills more manageable during colder or hotter months when energy usage is higher. Customers can log into their online account at to see if they are eligible for a budget plan and calculate their anticipated monthly amount. If not registered for MyAccount, customers can do so at to access all the benefits and tools available. Analyze Usage Tool: While signed into MyAccount, customers can access the free Analyze Usage tool to receive customized insights to help save energy and money. By answering a few simple questions about their household energy use, customers can get personalized tips to reduce energy consumption. They can also track their usage to better understand how and when they use energy the most. Bill Assistance Programs and Payment Plans: There are many reasons customers may need help with home energy costs. For customers who are having trouble paying their electric bills, there are a variety of programs that can help them get back on track. Customers can visit to learn about available assistance programs and see if they qualify for a payment arrangement. Customers may also be eligible to enroll in an installment plan or request a "promise to pay" extension on their due date directly in their online account. Tips for Managing Energy UsageThere are simple steps customers can take to help improve energy efficiency throughout their home and save on their monthly bill. Customers can use energy wisely all year long with the following energy-savings tips: Weatherstrip doors and windows to prevent temperature-controlled air from escaping their home and to help eliminate strain on cooling and heating systems. Ensure HVAC systems are well-maintained. Clean filters, vents and coils to ensure optimal efficiency and extend the life of the equipment. Change furnace filters at least every three months or more often during periods of high use. Dirty and clogged filters make HVAC systems work harder, using more energy. When possible, place thermostats on an inside wall and away from windows and doors. Cold drafts or excess heat can cause thermostats to keep the system running unnecessarily. Turn off all lights when they are not in use and use a timer for outdoor lighting. Keep registers for supply or return air free of obstructions like curtains or furniture. Close fireplace dampers when not in use to keep temperature-controlled air from escaping. Customers can visit for more energy-saving tips. Potomac Edison also offers a variety of energy efficiency programs, like the Quick Home Energy Checkup and appliance recycling, that can help customers save energy and money. For more information and additional online tools that can help customers manage their electric accounts, visit Potomac Edison serves about 285,000 customers in seven Maryland counties and 155,000 customers in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Follow Potomac Edison at on X @PotomacEdison and on Facebook at FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at and on X @FirstEnergyCorp. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Potomac Edison Provides Maryland Customers Programs and Tools to Manage Electric Bills
WILLIAMSPORT, Md., May 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Spring is in full swing, a welcome change after this winter's sub-zero temperatures. As spring turns to summer, energy use and costs can often increase as cooling systems work harder to keep homes comfortable. Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), is sharing tips and tools to help customers manage their energy use and budget during periods of high demand and all year long. Jim Myers, FirstEnergy President, West Virginia and Maryland: "We know that managing costs is important to our customers, and we're committed to arming them with the information and tools to help them take control of their energy budget. After a frigid winter that drove up electricity costs for many, we want to be sure customers are aware of the many options available to manage monthly electric bills and how to use energy wisely with the hot summer months around the corner." Programs and Tools to Manage Electric BillsThere are a variety of programs and tools that can help customers manage their energy budget or better use electricity throughout the home, including: Budget Billing: A budget billing plan can help customers better anticipate monthly energy costs and provide greater control over their energy budget. Known as the Average Payment Plan (APP), budget billing spreads out annual costs across all 12 months to help even out seasonal highs and lows and make monthly bills more manageable during colder or hotter months when energy usage is higher. Customers can log into their online account at to see if they are eligible for a budget plan and calculate their anticipated monthly amount. If not registered for MyAccount, customers can do so at to access all the benefits and tools available. Analyze Usage Tool: While signed into MyAccount, customers can access the free Analyze Usage tool to receive customized insights to help save energy and money. By answering a few simple questions about their household energy use, customers can get personalized tips to reduce energy consumption. They can also track their usage to better understand how and when they use energy the most. Bill Assistance Programs and Payment Plans: There are many reasons customers may need help with home energy costs. For customers who are having trouble paying their electric bills, there are a variety of programs that can help them get back on track. Customers can visit to learn about available assistance programs and see if they qualify for a payment arrangement. Customers may also be eligible to enroll in an installment plan or request a "promise to pay" extension on their due date directly in their online account. Tips for Managing Energy UsageThere are simple steps customers can take to help improve energy efficiency throughout their home and save on their monthly bill. Customers can use energy wisely all year long with the following energy-savings tips: Weatherstrip doors and windows to prevent temperature-controlled air from escaping their home and to help eliminate strain on cooling and heating systems. Ensure HVAC systems are well-maintained. Clean filters, vents and coils to ensure optimal efficiency and extend the life of the equipment. Change furnace filters at least every three months or more often during periods of high use. Dirty and clogged filters make HVAC systems work harder, using more energy. When possible, place thermostats on an inside wall and away from windows and doors. Cold drafts or excess heat can cause thermostats to keep the system running unnecessarily. Turn off all lights when they are not in use and use a timer for outdoor lighting. Keep registers for supply or return air free of obstructions like curtains or furniture. Close fireplace dampers when not in use to keep temperature-controlled air from escaping. Customers can visit for more energy-saving tips. Potomac Edison also offers a variety of energy efficiency programs, like the Quick Home Energy Checkup and appliance recycling, that can help customers save energy and money. For more information and additional online tools that can help customers manage their electric accounts, visit Potomac Edison serves about 285,000 customers in seven Maryland counties and 155,000 customers in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Follow Potomac Edison at on X @PotomacEdison and on Facebook at FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at and on X @FirstEnergyCorp. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp. Sign in to access your portfolio
