Comedian and actor Matt Lucas has spoken out about why he decided to lose such a dramatic amount of weight.
Lucas - best known for starring in British sketch comedy series Little Britain - has more recently taken to our screens as the co-host of the Great British Bake Off.
As well as ruffling some feathers for his comment about being gluten-free, Lucas has also sparked conversation given his recent weight loss.
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The actor has since opened up about the sad reason he decided to adapt his lifestyle - and why his appearance has changed - in such a drastic way.
The 48-year-old told the Mirror how his father passed away at just four years older than he is now, at the age of 52, and that his grandfather died at around the age of only 56.
Lucas reflected: "I was looking at the law of averages here. I was very big and I was getting bigger in the pandemic. Not being very active, not going out, eating a lot of roast potatoes.
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"[...] I can't tell you how many roast potatoes I ate. If you went into your supermarket and you couldn't find potatoes, there were a lot of food shortages and people found things hard to get hold of, that was me.
"I have to own up to that. No matter where you were in the world, that was me. I was eating so many roast potatoes because there was nothing else to do.
"I had my housemate and he stayed really fit, because he's a personal trainer. He was eating the roast potatoes but he was also going and doing huge fitness routines. I was not. I got to the point I was eating so many roast potatoes that I started making them into different shapes to give me something to do."
Resolving he was 'so big' he 'couldn't really fit on screen anymore', Lucas subsequently decided to make some serious changes to his lifestyle.
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He noted: "I've still got a proper tummy. I'm not skinny by any means. I've just lost some weight. I've gone from a XXL, sometimes I was XXXL, down to a medium now I think.
"Although sometimes medium is big on me and sometimes it is small on me."
The comedian resolved that he does feel 'a bit better' and definitely 'a bit relieved'.
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"I don't do any drugs and I don't smoke and I hardly ever drink. It's just the food really. But now I don't eat as much. I eat sweets still, I love sweets," he added.
Lucas joked: "I think I'm naturally predisposed to be horizontal. I'm just one of those horizontal people. I rather enjoy it."
If you've been affected by any of the issues in this article and would like to speak with someone in confidence, call the BEAT Eating Disorders helpline on 0808 801 0677. Helplines are open 365 days a year from 9am–8pm during the week, and 4pm–8pm on weekends and bank holidays. Alternatively, you can try the one-to-one webchat
Topics: Health, Celebrity, TV And Film
Poppy Bilderbeck