Keith Floyd - Illness and Death

Illness and Death

In 2002 Floyd, a smoker and heavy drinker, was reported to have suffered a mild stroke, although he denied this in his autobiography. In November 2004 he was banned from driving for 32 months and fined £1,500 after crashing his car into another vehicle while three-and-a-half times over the legal alcohol limit. He suspected he had lung cancer or emphysema in 2006, but was given the all-clear after a medical examination. In 2006 he was diagnosed as suffering from malnutrition. In August 2007 he was hospitalised in Thailand after collapsing in a restaurant. He collapsed at a pub in Chesterton, Staffordshire on 29 January 2008 and was admitted to hospital. He was released on 22 February, travelling to his home in France to recuperate. He made a full recovery and was back on his feet shortly afterwards. On 14 September 2008, exactly a year before his death, he fell out of bed and concussed himself. Paramedics spent three hours reviving him and he was hospitalised for several days.

On 29 July 2009, it was reported that Floyd had been diagnosed with bowel cancer. He underwent five serious operations, which removed 90% of the cancer; he subsequently underwent a course of chemotherapy at Nîmes Hospital. Despite his illness and heavy drinking, his liver was working at 100% capacity. Floyd died of a heart attack, aged 65, on 14 September 2009, in Bridport, Dorset at the home of his partner Celia Martin (née Constanduros, born 1944, widow of screenwriter Dave Martin).

The following day, chefs provided quotes for the media. Anthony Worral Thompson said of him: "I think all of us modern TV chefs owe a living to him. He kind of spawned us all." Marco Pierre White, told BBC radio Floyd "inspired a nation". White also said, "The thing which is very sad is a little piece of Britain today died which will never be replaced. He was a beautiful man, his ability to inspire people to cook just with his words and the way he did things was extraordinary. If you look at TV chefs today they don't have his magic. It's a very, very, very sad day for my industry and secondly for a nation.". This despite, in Keith Meets Keith, Floyd severely criticising modern television chefs for promoting themselves more than the food. Floyd's humanist funeral took place on 30 September 2009 in Bristol.