Davina McCall has said she is “not afraid of dying anymore” following her recovery from a life-changing brain tumour diagnosis.
The TV presenter was diagnosed with a colloid cyst, a rare, benign brain tumour, in November, and underwent a six-hour operation to remove it.
The 57-year-old, who is now in the clear, revealed that the experience has completely shifted her outlook on life.
Ahead of the surgery, McCall said she was forced to have difficult conversations with her family in case she didn’t wake up.
Speaking at Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place Festival at Gunnersbury Park over the weekend, she reflected on the emotional journey she’s been on since her diagnosis.
“I am not afraid of dying anymore and it was the biggest journey of my life from August 2023 to November 2024,” she said, as reported by MailOnline.
“I want to help people on their deathbed on my Begin Again podcast now so they can say, ‘I have lived the life I wanted,’ and not think things like, ‘I wish I had not done that job. I wish I had not stayed in this relationship.’”
McCall also spoke about how her connection with Cotton helped during the experience.
“Sometimes I feel like there are other powers at play,” she shared. “All the fear that comes around the word ‘tumour’... Fearne and I understood each other at that time.
“I mean, it’s a really amazing place to get to, not being scared of dying. I think having no regrets and feeling like you are living fully in the life you want to be in, it’s quite rare.”
In May, McCall revealed she wrote letters and organised a will in case something happened during the operation.
Speaking to radio presenter Jamie Theakston on her podcast Begin Again, she explained: “I have never had thought processes like I had before my operation.
“Some people were like ‘You were quite extreme’ because I was like I need to make sure everyone is alright if I die, will, letters.”
When Theakston asked if she really did that, she replied: “Yeah. I mean I was literally telling everybody [that I was fine].
“But being on an operating table is a risk at our age.”
In April, McCall said she feels “lucky to be able to draw a line under this” when “so many people can’t”.
In an Instagram video, where she appeared alongside her partner, celebrity hairdresser Michael Douglas, she said: “We thought we’d post a final brain operation update.
“So last week I had my final MRI and I was a bit nervous about it because I knew that if any of it was left then it would grow back and I’d just go through the whole thing again, which I was prepared to do. I kind of mentally prepared myself for that.”
A picture of the MRI scan was shown on screen and McCall said the scan was “clear”.
She added: “I really want to say a massive thank you to everybody that looked after me so well.”
