Peep Show star Matt King has revealed he was temporarily paralysed after suffering a rare stroke of the spinal cord.
The 58-year-old, who played the quirky Super Hans on the beloved Channel 4 comedy series, was rushed to hospital earlier this week.
The actor said he has since regained movement and is continuing to recover.
“It’s true. I had a rare stroke of the spinal cord on Sunday,” he wrote on Instagram alongside a selfie in his hospital bed.
“I was initially paralysed but was rushed to The Royal Sussex and the staff have been amazing. Can walk again, a bit. My legs were jelly, man. It didn’t feel f***ing brilliant.”
He concluded with an emotional shout-out to his fans, writing, “Thank you for all the love and kindness,” alongside a blue heart emoji.
A spinal stroke is a type of stroke that “stops blood flow in your spinal cord. Healthcare providers also call them spinal cord strokes, spinal infarctions or spinal infarcts,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“Most strokes happen when a blood vessel in your brain is blocked by a blood clot or breaks (ruptures) and bleeds. The same issues cause spinal strokes, but the blockage or bleeding (hemorrhage) happens in your spinal cord,” the website stated.
“Spinal strokes are very rare (less than 1 per cent of all strokes). But they can still be fatal or cause permanent disabilities.”
King is a DJ and comedian alongside being an actor and has starred in his own sketch shows across the UK. He often plays DJ sets, sometimes in character as Super Hans.
He became a fan favourite with the kooky character, who was the dysfunctional friend of Robert Webb’s Jeremy Usbourne on Peep Show.
The show also featured Davd Mitchell as Mark Corrigan, Olivia Colman as Sophie Chapman, Isy Suttie as Dobby, and Sophie Winkleman as Big Suze.
The Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain co-created show ran for 12 years and ended in 2015.
Last year, King shared his hopes for a one-off Peep Show reunion.
“When it ended in 2015, [writers] Sam and Jesse said to us, ‘We’ll see you in ten years. We’re going to write a one-off,’” he told The Sun.
“I did ask them six months ago. They said, ‘We still would be interested, but we’re just so busy, we can’t do a ten-year one.’ I feel like it will happen.”
