Rhod Gilbert breaks down in tears detailing his cancer battle on The GBBO Stand Up To Cancer Celebrity special as his TV return leaves viewers emotional: ‘I’m lucky to be here at all’
Rhod Gilbert broke down in tears as he detailed his battle with cancer on Sunday’s Great Celebrity Bake Off Stand Up To Cancer special.
While fans loved seeing him return to television alongside Danny Dyer, Leigh Francis and Yinka Bokinni, viewers were left teary-eyed as the 55-year-old comedian became visibly emotional as he expressed how “lucky” he is to to be here.
Rhod battled the ‘brutal’ disease and was cleared in October 2023 after being diagnosed with head and neck cancer in 2022.
During the episode, he said, “For me, it’s really emotional to be here. There was a point where I didn’t really know what the future held. Just being here, being somewhere, is pretty good. Great, yes.’
He added: “I’m lucky to be here at all. When I was diagnosed with cancer, I realized that I had been plodding through life thinking ‘other people are getting cancer.’
Rhod Gilbert, 55, broke down in tears as he detailed his battle with cancer on Sunday’s Great Celebrity Bake Off Stand Up To Cancer special
While fans were happy to see him back on TV, viewers were left teary-eyed as the comedian became visibly emotional as he expressed how ‘lucky’ he is to be here
As he made his brave appearance in Channel 4’s celebrity special, fans were in awe of Rhod and commented on how ‘good’ he looked.
On X, formerly known as Twitter, some wrote: ‘So happy to see Rhod Gilbert back on TV #GBBO’
‘The best thing about tonight’s Bake Off is that you can tell the charity is close to Rhod Gilbert’s heart. It’s just amazing how much charity work he does. #GBBO’
‘Love this ep of #celebritybakeoff, Danny is always good entertainment and it’s also so good to see Rhod Gilbert back and looking good. #standuptocancer #su2c’
‘Rhod Gilbert on #GBBO If you haven’t seen his extremely moving documentary ‘A Pain in the Neck for SU2C’, I recommend you watch it.’
‘Anyone else think it should be #Rhodgilbert who wins? #GBBO #SU2C’
“Rhod Gilbert is one of my favorite comedians, and it’s going to be pure chaos to have him next to Danny Dyer.”
Over the past ten years, Rhod has raised almost £2 million for cancer care and research.
Rhod battled the ‘brutal’ disease and was cleared in October 2023 after being diagnosed with head and neck cancer in 2022
During the episode, he said, “For me, it’s really emotional to be here. There was a point where I didn’t really know what the future held. Just being here, being somewhere, is pretty good. Great, yes’
As he made his brave appearance in the Channel 4 celebrity special, fans were in awe of Rhod and commented on how ‘good’ he looked
On X, formerly known as Twitter, some wrote: ‘So happy to see Rhod Gilbert back on TV # GBBO
Over the past ten years, Rhod has raised almost £2 million for cancer care and research
Rhod joined Danny Dyer, Leigh Francis and Yinka Bokinni (bottom row) in Sunday night’s episode
During a fundraising trip, he noticed some symptoms that later turned out to be head and neck cancer.
Rhod’s experience is captured in his upcoming Channel 4 documentary Rhod Gilbert: A Pain In The Neck.
The program follows the Welshman from his diagnosis and treatment through intimate video diaries.
Speaking about the decision to film his cancer journey, Rhod said: ‘I was in bed on Friday with my treatment due to start the following Monday.
‘I called the team I knew – there was no broadcaster on board, it was all to spec – and I said, ‘How would you like to come on this journey with me?’
‘It was partly for me. I had canceled all my TV work and tours and I wanted to have something other than ‘cancer’ on my agenda.
‘I knew I wouldn’t be good enough to go on stage or on TV, but I thought maybe I would be good enough to lie in bed and talk to a documentary team about how sick I was. I thought, ‘It’ll give me something to do.’
Earlier this year, Rhod revealed that he “ironically” first found the tumor on his neck while in Cuba on a hike to raise money for the Velindre Cancer Center, where he subsequently became a patient.
Rhod was diagnosed with cancer in his neck and throat, on a tonsil and at the base of his tongue, after finding a lump in April 2022
Rhod announced he plans to return to the stage and is planning a comedy tour for 2024, after admitting ‘life is too short’ (pictured in 2018)
He returned to screens for the first time since his diagnosis in February as he gave a moving speech at the National Comedy Awards, in support of Stand Up 2 Cancer.
Speaking from his home in the pre-recorded segment, he revealed he was having trouble “speaking or breathing” after finding a lump in his neck.
Rhod said:I couldn’t talk or breathe and I was postponing and canceling tour shows, I had horrible spasms in my face and a lot of tension in my muscles.
‘Couldn’t get to the bottom of it, after a biopsy of this lump in my neck turns out I have something called head and neck cancer, cancer of the head, sounded pretty serious.’
Rhod admitted his diagnosis ‘scared’ him, joking that he thought he would have ‘lifelong immunity’ after working as a patron for a cancer center for ten years.
He said: ‘I’ve led five fundraising tours around the world, I do stand-up comedy nights to raise money, I’ve run quizzes… it’s been a big part of my life for the last ten years, so imagine my surprise when I was diagnosed with cancer.
‘Which bullied me endlessly because I thought I would have lifelong immunity! Apparently not.
‘Apparently you are just as likely to get cancer even if you spend your time fundraising for a cancer hospital. Anyway, I got it and it turns out it can apply to anyone.”