Brian Blessed collapses on stage due to heart scare but returns 20 minutes later
LAST night Brian Blessed proved that he is a dedicated performer after he collapsed on stage, but returned 20 minutes later to finish the show.
The 78-year-old actor, who was portraying King Lear at the Holy Trinity Church in Guildford, fainted and fell from a raised platform towards the beginning of the Shakespearean play.
According to the Daily Mail, fellow actor Noel White - who was playing the Earl of Kent - announced quietly: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is not part of the play. Is there a doctor in the house?"
Other cast members, including his daughter Rosalind who played King Lear's daughter Goneril, crowded round the actor before a local surgeon examined him.
The audience applauded as Brian was helped off stage, but 20 minutes later he returned and finished his performance.
I feel such an idiot and am not in the habit of doing this, but I have a little fibrillation
"I feel such an idiot and am not in the habit of doing this, but I have a little fibrillation," he told the crowd.
Although his fellow cast mates were noticeably worried about him, the father-of-one completed the show, and at one point, was heard whispering: "We’re doing it!"
Director Caroline Devlin said of his spirit: "Brian was an inspirational wonder. He had a small heart operation three years ago.
"We are not entirely sure why he became so dizzy but he is a 20 year old in a 78 year old’s body. There was no stopping him."
