‘I am over the moon’: Only Fools And Horses star Patrick Murray, 65, says he’s ‘cured’ after cancer battle…10 months after being diagnosed
Former Only Fools And Horses star Patrick Murray says he’s ‘cured’ following his recent cancer battle.
The good news comes after the actor announced publicly in January that he had been diagnosed with the disease after doctor’s discovered a malignant tumour in his lung.
The 65-year-old who is best known for his role as Trilby loving wide-boy Mickey Pearce confirmed the news on Sunday on his Twitter account.
He tweeted: ‘Thanks again for all your lovely messages. As you may know, I was diagnosed with lung cancer last July.
‘After an op in October to remove the tumour I had chemo to help prevent the cancer returning.
‘During this chemo, another tumour was discovered in my liver. Luckily for me this cancer was unconnected to the lung cancer and was also treatable.
‘I had a procedure called TACE to deal with this. Last Friday l saw my oncologist She told me the lung cancer was cured and that the tumour in my liver was shrinking.
He cautiously added: ‘It’s not over yet, but as you can imagine I am over the moon with this latest news.
‘Thanks to the brilliant doctors and nurses of our NHS, I will hopefully I be there, at next years convention.’
Patrick played the role of ‘spiv’ Mickey in 20 episodes of Only Fools and Horses during its 22-year run, branded the slang term for his involvement in petty crime and dealing in black market goods.
He became best known for his outlandish declarations about his success in both business and women, and frequently took advantage of Rodney’s inexperience in the industry by stealing his money, and girlfriends.
After the show ended in 2003, landed several big-screen roles including The Firm and Curse Of The Pink Panther, but eventually quit acting to become a taxi driver in Kent.
Patrick was eventually forced to retire from work after battling Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which causes breathing difficulties.
He married his wife Anong, 36, in Thailand in 2016, and they were drawn into a Visa row in 2017, when his spouse and daughter’s application to move to the UK was denied.
Speaking on Loose Women at the time, he said: ‘I wanted to get her a visa but it was hard so I had to come back here.
‘Being out of the industry for so long, the work dried up so I went back to driving an executive car, a Mercedes, to do it. I only saw my baby on the phone for two years, I was a Skype dad.’
Luckily Patrick was later reuniting with his family after a battle with the Home Office in 2018.
The news comes after John Challis, Patrick’s Only Fools And Horses co-star, died ‘peacefully in his sleep’ on September 19 after a long battle with cancer.
John was best-known for his portrayal of second-hand car dealer Boycie – a cigar-smoking businessman with a mocking laugh who butted heads with Del Boy – in the beloved British sitcom, alongside Sir David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst.
Speaking shortly after his death, Sir David Jason, who played Derek ‘Del Boy’ Trotter on the hit show, called him a ‘dear friend’ and ‘wonderful actor’ and said he was pleased the star had witnessed the outpouring of admiration recently shown for the 40th anniversary of the first episode of the sitcom.
In a statement Sir David said: ‘It is with much sadness to hear that John Challis, a dear friend, has passed away.
‘He was a wonderful actor, a gentleman in the true sense of the word and I know he will be missed by so many.’
He added: ‘A character so well loved by the many fans of that show so I am pleased that he witnessed the outpouring of admiration recently shown for the 40th Anniversary of the first episode in 1981. I send my love and condolences to his wife, Carol.’
