Davina McCall fought back tears as she admitted her brain surgery led her to question whether her fiancé Michael Douglas wanted to be with her.
The presenter, 57, told fans last November how medics had discovered a ‘very rare’ colloid cyst that affects only three in a million people.
She later underwent surgery as doctors operated to remove the cyst, which they feared could cause serious problems if it grew any further.
Davina made a full recovery, but has now admitted she was left questioning if her fiancé Michael Douglas wanted to still be with her following the operation.
Speaking to Giovanna Fletcher’s Happy Mum Happy Baby podcast, teary Davina also admitted she can’t speak about her tumour ‘without crying’.
She emotionally said: ‘Michael, who spent the majority of the time with me, I’ve never seen him struggle with spending time with me, but sometimes… he was telling me sometimes I’d ask him the same thing, like seven times in half an hour, right?
Davina McCall fought back tears as she admitted her brain surgery led her to question whether her fiancé Michael Douglas wanted to be with her
The presenter, 57, told fans last November how medics had discovered a ‘very rare’ colloid cyst that affects only three in a million people
She later underwent surgery as doctors operated to remove the cyst, which they feared could cause serious problems if it grew any further
‘And he’d have to leave the room for a bit… But I could. It wasn’t normal. What was happening wasn’t our normal life.
‘I had long-term memory. I could remember… and I thought, “Oh, he doesn’t want to be with me.”
‘But in the end, we had a chat and he said, “What are you talking about? I love you, of course I want to be with you.”
‘He said, “You’re actually just a bit annoying at the moment.” And I laughed so hard with relief. I was so relieved to find out that it was a thing that will get better.’
Davina added: ‘I knew I was still in there. And sometimes I just wanted to shout, “Please remember me. I’m still here. I’m trying to get back to you but I don’t know how to do it. Wait for me. I promise you, I’m not going to be this annoying forever”.’
Speaking more about her memory loss following her surgery, Davina said: ‘What I didn’t anticipate was how difficult the six months after would be.
‘I did very well in approaching the operation and the lead-up to the operation and going to sleep, but I just thought life would go back to normal quite quickly, and I didn’t go back to normal.’
She added: ‘I didn’t understand, and people had said your short-term memory might be affected, but I just didn’t really get what that meant.
Speaking about her recovery following the invasive operation, Davina admitted her fiancé Michael Douglas ‘struggled’ as she experienced memory loss
Davina was speaking to Giovanna Fletcher on her podcast Happy Mum Happy Baby, as she admitted she can’t speak about her tumour ‘without crying’
Davina and Michael went public with their relationship in 2018 and by January 2023, Michael had moved in with her (pictured on September 10, 2025)
‘I just thought I wouldn’t remember what I’d just done. But I wasn’t aware that my memory was so bad.’
The former Big Brother host’s comments come just days after it was revealed how her hairstylist partner Michael had got down on one knee and proposed.
He was previously friends with Davina before her divorce to ex-husband Matthew Robertson was finalised. The pair have three children together – Holly, Tilly and Chester.
Davina and Michael went public with their relationship in 2018 and by January 2023, Michael had moved in with her.
Revealing her engagement, a friend of Davina’s said: ‘She has a ring but is only wearing it in private.’
‘It is wonderful news and everyone who knows them is just so thrilled. They really do make the most gorgeous couple,’ they told The Sun.
Download Giovanna Fletcher’s Happy Mum Happy Baby podcast every Tuesday at 6am from acast.com
