BBC Radio 2 presenter thanks NHS staff after treatment for minor brain haemorrhage

BBC presenter DJ Spoony has thanked the NHS and his family after being treated in hospital for a minor brain haemorrhage over the Christmas period.

The Radio 2 presenter, whose real name is Johnathan Joseph, told listeners on Monday that he had been suffering from headaches for a few weeks but had postponed seeing a doctor until December 21, when he decided to go to A&E.

He said of the doctors at Bedford Hospital: “They did some tests and said they were going to give me a little (CT) scan, and then he came back with the scan results and said, ‘Look, it looks like you I have a small brain haemorrhage and we need to send you to Addenbrooke’s (Cambridge Hospital), the specialist there has seen it.’

The 54-year-old said he was told doctors would have to operate and he would not be able to eat for more than 10 hours.

“The wonderful doctors and nurses at Addenbrooke’s had performed the operation, (they) had flushed me out. I felt fine 10 minutes after surgery. “I was talking about how I was looking forward to being back on the ward, eating a banana and taking a ginger shot,” he said.

“That’s all I could think about because I hadn’t had a mouth for fourteen hours, went back to the ward and I was doing just fine.”

The presenter added: “Thank you to everyone at Addenbrooke’s for looking after me, you’ve been amazing… to all my family and friends, and everyone… (I) just couldn’t wait to get back in the studio and do doing what I love.

“I really thought I could handle that without getting emotional.”

He then played Sounds of Blackness’ 1994 song Hold On (Change Is Comin’), which he said was “appropriate.”

On his Instagram account, the radio host said it was a subdural hematoma, a condition where there is bleeding in the brain, and said he had spent the morning of Christmas Day in hospital.

In 2022, he was recognized with a British Empire Medal (BEM) for his services to charity through music during the Covid-19 pandemic, when he regularly hosted live streams using his home equipment to play a variety of music to to help people ‘connect’. and raise money for charity.

Joseph started his radio career on Kiss 100 in 1997 before joining BBC Radio 1 three years later.