Marr, 53, made his first television appearance on his own show on Sunday morning and spoke of his battle to regain his health. Despite still struggling to walk properly, he insists he will return to his previous job as one of the BBC's top presenters and interviewers. He said: "I had a major stroke, I'm frankly lucky to be alive. I had been heavily overworking - mostly my own fault - in the year before that. "I'd torn the carotid artery, which takes blood into the brain, and had a stroke overnight - which basically wipes out a bit of your brain. "In my case, luckily not my voice or memory or anything like that, but the whole left hand side of my body, which is why I'm still not able to walk fluently. A kind of elegant hobble is the best I can manage. "My left arm isn't much good yet. I've got a lot of physio still to do."
The presenter explained that the stroke in January came after he had been working very hard and also exercising intensively. He said: "I'd had two minor strokes, it turned out, in that year - which I hadn't noticed - and then I did the terrible thing of believing what I read in the newspapers. "The newspapers were saying what we must all do is take very intensive exercise, in short bursts, and that's the way to health. "Well I went on to a rowing machine and gave it everything I had, and had a strange feeling afterwards - a blinding headache, and flashes of light - served out the family meal, went to bed, woke up the next morning lying on the floor unable to move." Mr Marr pre-recorded interviews with the Conservative former Cabinet minister Lord Parkinson and the Labour peer Baroness Kennedy on Saturday at Broadcasting House. The live section of his programme is still being hosted by guest presenters, with newsreader Sophie Raworth standing in on Sunday. Mr Marr assured her that he remained determined to return to full-time duties in time. "The only way through is intensive physio and doing a lot of it. And I'm now in the period where if I really concentrate on the physio, I will get better, and if I don't, I won't. Which is why I'm not back trying to do the job full-time, I have to say," he said. "I'm going to be taking your chair I'm absolutely sure, when I'm ready. I'm certainly coming back. I've got a lot more to say about it all, but I'm going to wait until I've gone through the physio to do so." |
Andrew Marr in December 2012 weeks before his stroke ____________________________________________________
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