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Clive James tells BBC Radio 4 he is 'getting near the end' of his life | Clive James tells BBC Radio 4 he is 'getting near the end' of his life |
(about 6 hours later) | |
Broadcaster, writer and journalist Clive James has admitted he is "getting near the end", two years after being diagnosed with cancer. | Broadcaster, writer and journalist Clive James has admitted he is "getting near the end", two years after being diagnosed with cancer. |
The Australian star, best known for his ITV show Clive James on Television, but also a prolific novelist, poet and cultural critic and commentator, was diagnosed with leukaemia, kidney failure and lung disease in 2010. | The Australian star, best known for his ITV show Clive James on Television, but also a prolific novelist, poet and cultural critic and commentator, was diagnosed with leukaemia, kidney failure and lung disease in 2010. |
James told BBC Radio 4's Meeting Myself Coming Back: "I'm getting near the end. I don't want to cast a gloom, an air of doom, over the programme but I'm a man who is approaching his terminus." | James told BBC Radio 4's Meeting Myself Coming Back: "I'm getting near the end. I don't want to cast a gloom, an air of doom, over the programme but I'm a man who is approaching his terminus." |
In the show, to be broadcast on Saturday, James said he has "been really ill for two-and-a-half years" and "almost died four times in that period". | In the show, to be broadcast on Saturday, James said he has "been really ill for two-and-a-half years" and "almost died four times in that period". |
However, following the release of material from the Radio 4 programme, James's spokeswoman said the interview had "sounded much less doom-laden than it does when transcribed". | |
"Clive is in fact in reasonable shape and is looking forward to years of working, writing his books and his column for the [Daily] Telegraph," she added. | |
James was born in Sydney and came to England in 1961, where he made a career in journalism including a successful stint as a prominent literary critic and TV reviewer for the Observer for 10 years from 1972. | James was born in Sydney and came to England in 1961, where he made a career in journalism including a successful stint as a prominent literary critic and TV reviewer for the Observer for 10 years from 1972. |
Clive James on Television ran for years on ITV and his wry commentary on TV programmes from around the world, including the Japanese gameshow Endurance, made him a household name. | Clive James on Television ran for years on ITV and his wry commentary on TV programmes from around the world, including the Japanese gameshow Endurance, made him a household name. |
During a successful TV career in the 1980s and 1990s James also presented travel programmes for ITV and the BBC, various entertainment shows, and the documentary series Fame in the 20th Century. | During a successful TV career in the 1980s and 1990s James also presented travel programmes for ITV and the BBC, various entertainment shows, and the documentary series Fame in the 20th Century. |
The father of two, who is married to academic Prue Shaw, said he was facing the fact he might never see Sydney again. | The father of two, who is married to academic Prue Shaw, said he was facing the fact he might never see Sydney again. |
He said: "I've been so sick since January 2010, especially my lung disease, that I'm not allowed to fly. You couldn't get enough oxygen aboard a plane for me to get me to Sydney." | He said: "I've been so sick since January 2010, especially my lung disease, that I'm not allowed to fly. You couldn't get enough oxygen aboard a plane for me to get me to Sydney." |
James also spoke about the "defining event" of his life – the death of his father who survived a second world war prison camp only to die on the journey back to Australia. He said: "I never saw him. I think I was in his arms as a baby for one day before he sailed away." | James also spoke about the "defining event" of his life – the death of his father who survived a second world war prison camp only to die on the journey back to Australia. He said: "I never saw him. I think I was in his arms as a baby for one day before he sailed away." |
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