FORMER Strictly Come Dancing contestant Reverend Richard Coles has undergone spinal surgery.
The much-loved TV star and retired vicar, 61, shared a picture of his legs in compression stockings ahead of his procedure.
His X, formerly Twitter, followers were surprised to see him in hospital but sent him their best regards.
One wrote: “Good luck, I hope everything goes well and you will soon be feeling much better.”
Another said: “Good luck with whatever is being fixed.”
A third posted: “I didn’t know surgery was on the cards. My very best wishes to you.”
Everything appeared to go well, and Richard soon updated them from his recovery room.
“Well I totally get the thing Michael Jackson had for Propofol,” he joked in a nod to the King of Pop’s reliance on powerful medication prior to his death.
He continued: “Felt a tad woozy next thing I knew I was in recovery with an upgraded spine (not illustrated) having a lovely dream about dirigibles.”
Richard, 61, who was on Strictly in 2017, lost his partner Reverend David Coles three and a half years ago at the age of 43, after a battle with alcoholism.
Earlier this year he turned to dating site Elite Singles – a platform that has now helped him to find love again.
“I wanted to go on a website where I would meet someone who was not looking for a sugar daddy, who was my age, who lived in my sort of world, who I could share my life with,” Richard explained.
He continued to tell the Sunday Times that his new relationship is with 58-year-old Dickie Cant, who is the son of the late actor and Play Away presenter Brian.
According to the Strictly star, it was Dickie who made the first move, after sending him a “waving hello” on the site, which is designed for people who are “serious about dating.”
The pair enjoyed a first date at a Royal Horticultural Society and the rest is history.
He said his new love interest isn’t bothered by fame and, in turn, he isn’t bothered by Dickie’s atheism.
