PEEP Show star Robert Webb admitted it’s “a miracle” he’s alive after his health battle and dropping out of Strictly Come Dancing.
Robert and pro partner Dianne Buswell quit the competition back in 2021 – just days before the fourth live episode.
3 Robert was paired with Dianne Buswell on StrictlyCredit: PA
3 The comic was struggling after undergoing a heart opCredit: Shutterstock
At the time the pair released a statement confirming their departure and explained that it was due to Robert’s ill health following major heart surgery.
Just a year before signing up, the actor had emergency surgery to save his life after doctors discovered he had a congenital heart defect.
Recalling that time at the recent Rose d’Or Awards, the 53-year-old said: “I very nearly died and yet I made a full recovery and so that is an amazing gift, to have got that close but to come out of it with a normal life expectancy and normal everything else.
“It was amazing and every now and again when things bum me out slightly I can look out of the window and remember that it is a beautiful miracle to be alive.
“It’s a really good thing.”
On taking on the challenge of Strictly too soon after his surgery, he added: “Strictly was very challenging.
“It was too much for me because I tried doing it a year and a half after I had open heart surgery which was a bit optimistic so yes I found it really hard.
“It was a positive experience but my body just wasn’t ready for it at all.
“Strictly was my bungy jump. I was like, okay I’ve got this whole new body, let’s take it out for a spin and see what it can do.”
Despite enjoying his short stint on the show, calling it and the people “lovely” he has ruled out a return.
He said: “My body is fine now. I’ve made a full recovery.
“I would be mad to do it again. I’m even older now. I run a couple of times a week and I do weights when I can be bothered although it’s pretty boring.
“I like to keep fit these days and I genuinely like out door running which is weird. I never used to do anything until my operation and then I started taking my health more seriously. I came to it very late.”
The star previously explained that he had also been “slow-killing” himself with alcohol, increasing the amount he was consuming to the point where he believed he had become addicted.
But his near-death experience, and being taken into hospital, gave him the shock he needed.
He said back in 2021: “It does give you a different perspective, because I had been trying to give up drinking and smoking for the last five, six or ten years and found it really difficult.”
3 Robert’s last dance with Dianne during Movie Week – dressed up as Kermit The Frog and Ms. PiggyCredit: PA