John Tothill undergoes urgent surgery

Comic cancels Edinburgh Fringe shows after his appendix burst

Comedian John Tothill has gone to hospital for an urgent appendix operation, cancelling some of his Edinburgh Fringe run.

The stand-up previously took three days off from he festival after falling ill, but doctors were unsure what was wrong, and he retuned for five more shows.

However, it was later discovered that his appendix had burst, with a spokesman saying: ‘John had unknowingly performed five shows while being artistically sabotaged by his own vestigial organ.’

Before the festival, the comedian made headlines with his story of having deliberately contracted malaria in a clinical trial in order to fund last year’s Fringe debut.

He went in for his operation today and says he will be back on stage ‘as soon as he is medically and legally allowed’.

Depending on the severity of the appendectomy, the NHS says patients can be discharged within 24 hours, although it can take a week if there are complications. After-effects include pain and bruising around the wound and possibly constipation.

According to the NHS website, patients ‘should be able to return to normal activities in a couple of weeks, although you may need to avoid more strenuous activities for 4 to 6 weeks after open surgery’ but meant procedures are keyhole surgeries.

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Published: 12 Aug 2024