Davina McCall reveals she received support from Peter Kay following her brain tumour diagnosis and breast cancer battle

Davina McCall has revealed how she was privately supported by comedian Peter Kay after being diagnosed with a brain tumour and breast cancer.

The TV presenter, 58, had surgery to remove the benign (non-cancerous) tumour in 2024, before being diagnosed with breast cancer the following year.

As Davina battled the double bout of bad news, she revealed she found an unlikely champion in Peter, who she was not friends with prior to her illnesses.

While in hospital undergoing treatment on the brain tumour, she told how she received an unexpected phone call from Peter, 53, to offer his help.

Davina said: 'Do you know who really helped me, actually, and it was really strange. Peter Kay. He called me when I was in hospital with my brain tumour.

'I really don't know him that well but he was unbelievably supportive.'

Davina continued by revealing that he stayed by her side after receiving the news about her breast cancer, and said: 'When I had my breast cancer diagnosis he just talked me through what to do. 

'He said: "What do you want to do? How do you feel about it?" And he said: "I think you know what you want to do". And I was like: "Yeah I want to talk about it.''

Davina, who spoke about her friendship with Peter while receiving the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Edinburgh TV Festival, also reflected on how her husband Michael Douglas was also a pillar of strength at that time.

Davina explained how the breast cancer 'brought them back together', because the brain tumour had pushed them apart due to the loss of her short term memory.

She said: 'At the end of brain-tumour-gate, cancer brought us together. The tumour pushed us apart because I had no short term memory – I was over here trying to get better and he was over worrying if I was ever going to come back.

'But cancer smushed us back together in such a weird way, it was just a beautiful way for us to just reconnect and rebond.

'I was almost grateful for that experience, and I caught it early so I did make a full recovery but there was something about it that we needed.'

Davina and Michael wed back in December at Marylebone Town Hall with just close friends and family present.

The pair's first wedding came just weeks after Davina revealed she'd been diagnosed with breast cancer, and underwent surgery to remove a lump.

The TV star revealed her breast cancer diagnosis to her fans last year, though she noted she had detected it early after noticing a lump and getting it checked, leading to a successful lumpectomy.

She recently confirmed she completed her course of preventative radiotherapy and became emotional about the treatment coming to an end.

Whilst she is not retiring anytime soon, Davina has revealed she is stepping back from full-time work after her breast cancer diagnosis served as a stark wake-up call.

She described the overhaul as essential after facing two major health scares in quick succession - a rare brain tumour in 2024, followed by cancer.

Speaking candidly on the Miss Me? podcast, the Masked Singer judge admitted the double health blow had forced her to confront a lifetime of running from change and overworking.

Davina explained that while her brain tumour had initially prompted reflection about reducing stress, it was the subsequent breast cancer diagnosis that truly forced her hand.

'I had an amazing breakthrough when I got clean in the early nineties,' she said, referring to her heroin and alcohol addiction in her twenties.

'I had another huge breakthrough after I had my brain tumour removed. I realised that I needed to de-stress my life.

'Interestingly, I realised that - but then the breast cancer, which I thought was a very, very frightening thing, made me realise that I really, really had to put that into place. And I have now.'