A major rock star from Derry has been whisked off to hospital for urgent surgery.
Snow Patrol's Johnny McDaid is on a tight schedule to get back in shape for the band's upcoming packed festival itinerary. Frontman Gary Lightbody disclosed that McDaid, Courteney Cox's other half, suffered a hand injury after an unfortunate encounter with a door.
However, this wasn't the only mishap to befall McDaid. Despite sustaining injuries from two separate events involving Johnny, the band managed to deliver two sell-out performances in Belfast, with McDaid powering through the discomfort. His most recent injury occurred just before their gig last Thursday.
Read more: Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody opens up on Snow Patrol's evolution and his own personal journey
"Johnny McDaid had hurt his hand at the start of the tour, we were going from Switzerland to Frankfurt on a train," Lightbody shared.
He went on to tell RTE: "We did the whole European tour on the train, it was really fun - except for this thing which happened, where Jonny got his hand caught in a door. And it wrecked his hand. He ended up getting surgery on his hand. Never missed a show."
"And then the Thursday night in Belfast, at midnight or so, he fell and wrecked his other hand - smashed his knuckles on his other hand. When we came in for soundcheck on Friday, he couldn't move the fingers on his right hand. And he still played the show on Friday night."
Gary said Johnny had undergone his surgery on Sunday, adding it was "insane". "He had two broken hands on Friday's sow and he played the gig," the singer commented. "Unbelievable - he's made of different stuff from the rest of us, absolutely," he said.
The operation comes six years after the band were forced to pull out of playing Glastonbury Festival due to Johnny requiring an operation on his neck. At the time, Gary told fans: "Our dear brother, piano and guitar player Johnny McDaid has a serious problem with his neck and after consulting with some top neurosurgeons they are all in agreement that the only course of action is immediate surgery."
"Johnny has been incredible in the wake of this news and has remained calm at a time when a lot of people might freak out." The health scare comes ahead of a hectic schedule for the band who are due to play dozens of shows across the UK this summer, with their first being in Cardiff on June 12, before heading to the likes of Plymouth, Delamere, Cannock Chase and Scarborough.
But despite their busy schedule, Johnny has been speaking about his new book, The Forest Is The Path, which coincides with the release of their latest album, which was inspired by the death of his dad in 2019. Jack, Gary's dad had tragically suffered from dementia.
Speaking about his late dad, he said: "In my youth he was more of a sort of a stoic figure. He was a very funny man but he wouldn't have been too emotional. I never saw him cry or anything like that, he was kind of a tough guy. He wouldn't be running around telling people his feelings or anything like that, which probably would have been the opposite of me, I was more like my mum. Him and I were a bit sort of chalk and cheese."
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