Paul Hollywood reveals his struggles with carpal tunnel syndrome and the fear of surgery that comes with it
Wallasey: Paul Hollywood recently opened up about his battle with carpal tunnel syndrome. He described it as “severe” and admitted that the thought of surgery really scares him.
At 58, Paul has been a beloved judge on The Great British Bake Off since it started in 2010. But his baking journey began way back when he was just 17, after leaving art school to join the family bakery.
Years of kneading dough have taken a toll on his wrists, leading to serious nerve damage. If he doesn’t get it treated, he risks losing feeling in his hands completely.
In a chat on the Graham Norton show, he shared that he had to cut back on baking because of the pain. A doctor told him he might need surgery to fix the issue.
Paul explained, “I’ve got carpal tunnel syndrome in both my wrists, it’s severe. It was diagnosed about four years ago.” He’s been trying to manage the pain by baking less, which has helped a bit.
Interestingly, he mentioned that Mary Berry, his former co-host, also dealt with this condition and had surgery. He said, “I did speak to Mary about it and she goes ‘Oh I had it done.”
But the idea of surgery still terrifies him. He joked about how he races cars and how tough it would be to recover from the operation right now.
Recently, Paul and Prue Leith crowned Chris Bisson as the winner of The Great Christmas Bake Off. It was a tight competition, but Bisson really impressed them.
Looking ahead, Paul will be on ITV’s Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh this Sunday. It’s always fun to see him in a different setting!
