Late Late Show talking points, including Lisa McHugh on Functional Neurological Disorder
Lisa McHugh on the Late Late Show
Country singer Lisa McHugh spoke about the “huge wake-up call” of her recent diagnosis of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND). She described the difficulties in finding a diagnosis as her medical tests all came back clear.
“The results come back ‘normal’, but your symptoms are very real. People have seizures, they have speech problems, they've tremors, they've weakness, which is what I have.” The mother of two said that since sharing her diagnosis, she has had many people reach out with similar stories.
“When I was diagnosed, I'd never heard of it at all, but since I have shared my story, the thousands of messages I have had from people to say that they're going through something similar and they've been sent home and they've no help.
“They've nowhere to turn or what to do, and they're really, really struggling. It's mind-blowing the amount of people who are so ill.”
The mother of two said despite doing what she loves for work, “stress and burnout” while touring may have triggered her FND.
“It's touring around the country, and you're eating at the wrong times, you're eating the wrong food, you're not getting enough sleep and you're going home then late at night.
“You're getting up first thing in the morning with the kids, being mum again and then you're going to do the shop. You're trying to squeeze in everything and wear every hat you can, and in that time I just completely forgot about looking after myself,.”
The Thursday Murder Club author and TV presenter Richard Osman spoke to Patrick Kielty about becoming a writer as well as his career in quiz shows.
On the topic of Celebrity Traitors, Osman revealed he would love to see beloved Irish author Marian Keyes taking part.
“Imagine Marian as a Traitor! She'd be the greatest Traitor of all time because no one would believe it of her,” he said, adding she previously gave him helpful advice when they were talking about the difficulty of finding time to write.
“The only thing about writing, if you're writing, is you've got to sit down and do it - that's the only rule. You've got to put your backside in the chair and actually start. It's like going to the gym: you've got to put your trainers on. And that's the worst bit of it, and once you've done it, you think, 'Now I'm going to have to do it'.
"And she said, 'Well, I always light a candle. Before I start writing, I light a candle. So, before the candle is lit, I'm not writing. When it's lit, I am writing'. I said, 'That's a really lovely idea'.
“And then two days later I get a thing in the post - and it's a candle from Marian, saying 'Happy writing'. That's nice, so I cannot believe she's a Traitor! That is why she'd be amazing!”
There was not one but two comedians in the studio on Friday night. First, Cork comic Kyla Cobbler made her Late Late debut and spoke about why running a marathon was “the worst experience” of her life.
“Anybody that runs a marathon, what you need to do, go home and repair the relationship with your family. Stop running marathons. It is so awful,” she said.
“And everyone kept saying to me, if you run half, you can run a full one, and that is not true. And people kept saying as well, it's a mental game. It's not. It's very physical. It's extremely physical.
“I just want to pay my rent and stay hydrated and I'm buzzing. Honestly, life is a marathon, right?”
Vittorio Angelone also spoke on the show about growing up in an Italian Irish family in Belfast, carving out his place in the comedy scene, and falling asleep doing a very important match.
He revealed that recently a bout of jet lag saw him snooze through the Ireland v Hungary game, only waking as the final goal was scored.
“We’re not used to this — winning. I’m worried that we are getting filled with expectation,” he said, describing how England football fans seem to have a misplaced confidence in tournaments.
“It’s funny, in the build-up to a tournament they’re all like, ‘Oh, it’s coming home’. And it never is.”
