Fat Man’s Warning, Channel 4
Larger-than-life US comedy performer Steve Daly has a message for overweight Brits from the fattest nation on earth. With Britain sitting on an obesity time bomb, Steve’s message is no laughing matter.
Thirty-stone comedian Steve Daly is from Las Vegas. At 46 he’s morbidly obese and has nearly died from heart failure – twice. But before Steve embarks upon a radical weight loss programme he’s agreed to come to the UK for two weeks to use his body as a weapon to warn us Brits that we need to watch our weight. And his visit isn’t a moment to soon.
Britain is now officially the fattest nation in Europe with two-thirds of adults overweight and 22% of adults clinically obese. In fact, we are now only four years away from being as fat as Americans, 30% of whom are obese. Despite concern from his doctor, Steve squeezes into two economy aeroplane seats for the ten-hour flight to London where a nurse is waiting to check for any health risks – such as DVT – that could occur during the flight. With a clean bill of health he embarks on his two-week mission: to warn commuters, children and teenagers of the perils of over-eating.
Thursday 24 January 2008, Channel 4, 11.05PM
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I WAS BORN TO TWO PARENTS BOTH OF OVER 25 STONE
I LOST BOTH -ONE BELOW 21 THE OTHER BELOW 35 FOOD IS THE BASIS OF MY LIFE IT COMES BEFORE ANYTHING. BOOOZE LOOSEN’S IT BUT FULL FOOD IS THE BE ALL AND END ALL, BUT THEN THERE IS MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGTHER, THOSE THOUGHTS IN MY HEAD NEVER SURFACE, SHE IS THE BE AND ALL OF MY WORLD AND IS SO ROUNDED I LOVE HER TO BITS.
PEOPLE KNOW ME AS A CRUX TO FRIENDS, BUT MY PARENTS SO HARD TO MISS – STRANGE SEEING THE TIME INVOLVED. THEY ARE MISSED BY THE COMMUNITY ITS HARD TO MOVE ON I AM OVER 6 STONE LIGHTER THEN THEM, MY DAUGHER IS 4STONE LIGHTER AT HER AGE THAN I WAS, YET I AM STIL 5 STONE OVER WEIGHT? STILL 4 STONE UNDER THAN MY MOTHER AT MY AGE??????
STILL AT A SLIMMING CLUB BUT FOOD HAS TAKEN OVER ????
PS MY PARTNER IS 10 STONE! AND MY DAUGHTER IS GEORGEOUS 16 NEXT YEAR,
A LOT THINNNER THAN I WAS AND I CAN’T HELP BUT THINK I’M LIVING TO SEE MY DAUGHTER MORE THAN MY MOTHER DID ME
My upbringing was wonderful, old fashioned (early ’60s), poor, and imposed the severe self restraint and discipline, so common then. So whilst sympathising overwieght people, I have never really felt the same about grossly overwieght people. I could just not imagine how they got there, so could not connect with thier plight, until Steve’s program.
I had tears in my eyes for Steve, and I am not moved easily.
I hope he does not continue his struggle as he is, and become a martyr to his own cause. Doing that would be such a waste, and not do his cause nearly so much good as loosing wieght would.
You are a corageous and active man Steve, you have no doubt, saved others, now use that drive on yourself. Good Luck.
Mark