James Whale misses TalkTV show for hospital stay amid stage 4 cancer battle

JAMES Whale has been absent from his TalkTV show for two weeks, as he continues to battle stage four cancer.

Veteran presenter James, 72, missed his Saturday night hosting duties as he stayed in hospital as part of a routine treatment, but is set to be back on the box later this week.

His longtime co-host Ash Gould, 52, and regular show contributor Lizzie Cundy, 55, stood in for the Surrey-native, and addressed his absence at the beginning of the programme.

Ash said, "Whale's not in tonight cos he was just feeling a bit rough. He went to hospital to get a few checks and he's back home now."

Lizzie added, "I spoke to him 10 minutes ago, in fine fettle."

Ash continued, "Cos when I spoke to him, he said, 'Yeah I'm coming in Saturday, I'm coming in,' but then he wasn't... but you never know and hopefully he'll recuperate."

The former WAG concluded that James "sounded in fine form" and had been giving his pal Ash some "stick" during their call.

Broadcasting legend James was given just months to live two years ago - when the disease spread to his spine, brain, kidney and lungs - but is still bravely battling on.

He was originally diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2000, and was warned he had just three months to live at the time.

But James had his kidney removed and defied the odds by winning his fight against cancer.

When it returned 20 years later, the former Celebrity Big Brother housemate chose to be candid about his struggle with fans.

He previously admitted he considered throwing himself a farewell party and taking his own life after being diagnosed with spine, brain, and kidney cancer.

James is one of the UK’s leading radio broadcasters and recently received the first ever TRIC Recognition Award for his outstanding work across 50 years.

His late-night series, the James Whale Radio Show, which was broadcast live simultaneously on Radio Aire in Leeds and ITV in the 1980s, made the genre famous.

He spent 13 years presenting weeknights on talkSPORT from 1995 before moving onto a drivetime show on LBC broadcasting every weekday for four years, sparking a huge ratings rise.

He now hosts James Whale Unleashed between 10pm and 1am, Saturdays on News UK’s booming channel, TalkTV.