Nick Knowles explains unrecognisable new look and 'terminal diagnosis' theory
TV presenter Nick Knowles can hardly believe he’s been on our screens for 40 years - but he’s determined to keep pushing himself, despite bashfully dubbing himself “an overweight 61-year-old”.
He admits he’s often “terrified” on his latest adventures, which is no surprise - his travel programmes have seen him do everything from zip lining across the Grand Canyon to confronting a rattlesnake in Death Valley.
But while the DIY SOS hunk may feel like the same guy we know and love, the social media trolls have been quick to remark on his changed appearance of late - with Nick even trending online this week after appearing on The One Show as cruel trolls remarked he was “unrecognisable” due to his wider waistline and bushy beard.
The hate won’t be getting to Nick though.... he’s happy, newly-engaged to stunning fiancee Katie Dadzie, and reckons he is much more relatable than a superfit tough guy like Bear Grylls. The dad-of-four says: “There are lots of people making adventure programmes and a lot of them, like Bear Grylls, are young, they’re super fit. “I’m 61 now and it’s no great surprise that I’m a bit overweight. Even putting on a wetsuit and appearing on telly… you can’t worry.”
Nick Knowles has opened up about his appearance (Tim Merry / Daily Star)Hugely self-deprecating, the popular star quips: “If I laid down on a beach, Greenpeace would try to drag me back into the water.” Jokes about beached whales aside, Nick does believe in being active and for want of a better phrase, seizing the day. He was recently inspired while filming one of his travel shows in Patagonia.
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“I met a chap who cycled from Mexico down to the bottle of Argentina,” raves Nick. “He said to me, ‘You shouldn’t have to wait for a terminal diagnosis to go and make the most of your life’. I couldn’t agree more “You’ll be amazed at what you’re capable of if you push yourself. You can’t worry about what you look like or failing.
“Rather than sit on the sofa or going on a cruise or a package holiday - they’re all good things to do, don’t get me wrong - but I want to get up every day and challenge myself and do something a bit more extraordinary. I will say if I’m terrified or that I don’t fancy this, but then I do it anyway. You have to push yourself and try new experiences.
Nick was branded 'unrecognisable' following an appearance on The One Show (BBC)“I’m a 61-year-old bloke who’s got off the sofa, so if I can do it, anybody can!” Nick’s latest show, The Mighty Mississippi With Nick Knowles, which starts tonight on Channel 5, sees him follow the mighty river from Minneapolis in the north all the way south to New Orleans.
On route he jumps on Harley Davidson, records a song in the studio where Elvis started his career and - following in the footsteps of Presidents Barack Obama and George W Bush - throws a ceremonial first pitch in front of a 46,000-seater stadium, having never thrown a baseball in his life.
Nick says riding a Harley Davidson was a bucket list achievement (Channel 5)He also zoomed over the Mississippi in a helicopter, despite a crippling phobia of heights. “Most of the time I am trying to hide my fear,” says Nick. “I’ve done so many things at height on my shows that I have actually started to improve. It’s like immersion therapy - I’ve got better with all of these things.
“Sometimes I think ‘What the hell am I doing?’, like zip lining across the Grand Canyon. But then I’m flying and it’s amazing. It’s about conquering your fears. In this series I tried water skiing and I must have gone over about 20 times. A lot of the time I think what I’m hiding is that I’m not as brave as I sometimes make out. But that’s an important message to my kids - take on your fears.”
The presenter is currently engaged to Katie Dadrie, who is 27 years younger than him (Hoda Davaine/Dave Benett/Getty Images)Nick likes to go on adventures with his nine-year-old son Eddie, from his marriage to (second) ex-wife Jessica Moore, 26 years his junior. He says: “I’m a terrible surfer but I go surfing with him. We do some kayaking and adventure stuff like climbing.
“It’s incumbent on us to make sure that our kids don’t spend all their time on computer games and go out and do physical things as well. I think that’s a really really important thing.” Nick reveals he had many ‘pinch me’ moments doing the latest series - but mainly riding a Harley.
“A highlight was riding the Harley Davidson,” he says. “When my little boy came along I decided to give up motorbiking because it’s not a safe way to travel, but I’ve loved it all my life. When I got on the bike, I couldn’t stop smiling. And I recorded a song in the studios where Elvis once recorded. I know I’m not the best guitar player in the world, I know I’m not the best singer in the world, but my view is, whether you’re good, bad or indifferent, just have a go at it.”
Engaged to business owner Katie, who is 27 years younger than him, Nick admits he is young at heart. He says: “You’re as young as you feel.” And what about the wedding plans? Having proposed with a gummy sweet back in July, Nick says the plans are on the back burner at the moment.
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He says: “I’ve been away for pretty much 18 months travelling, I’ve a lot of work on and Katie’s got a lot of work on with her business as well. So we will get around to it, but no set plans.” Indeed he has no plans for slowing down at the moment, with travel shows in Patagonia and Mongolia due on screen soon - and it’s these travel programmes that he is most proud of.
He says: “I’ve been in TV 40 years this year, after doing my first thing on screen aged 21, and I think this is some of the best work that I’ve ever been involved with. I feel incredibly blessed that the audience have travelled with me in the various different things that I’ve done, whether it be DIY SOS and the building programmes or when I wrote a movie or a drama series or when I did Saturday night quiz shows for 12 years and now the travel shows as well. I never forget where I came from.”
- The Mighty Mississippi with Nick Knowles, is on Thursday 29th Feb and Fri 1st March Channel 5, 9pm
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