Stephen Fry recalls 6ft fall from O2 stage in first live interview since 'nasty' accidentGMB/ITV
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00:00 I was feeling whole and healed thanks to good physiotherapy.
00:02 Blimey! Yeah, it was pretty nasty.
00:04 I broke my leg in two places, my pelvis in four places,
00:08 and a bunch of ribs, so it was really quite serious.
00:11 And, er...
00:13 Actually, painkillers helped. Yes.
00:15 I know that sounds silly.
00:17 I mean, obviously, they reduce the pain,
00:19 but they mean the physio can get on your feet earlier.
00:21 And even though it was the dreaded OxyContin,
00:24 which has cut a swathe through America in the opioid crisis,
00:28 obviously it was being dealt to me very properly
00:30 and weaned off it so I didn't get addicted.
00:33 But because of the painkillers,
00:34 I was able to move earlier than I otherwise would have been.
00:37 And since then, just lots of hydrotherapy and physiotherapy.
00:40 Just remind viewers what happened.
00:42 You were hosting a conference on AI technology
00:47 and something as physical and down-to-earth and practical
00:50 is a massive drop from the stage.
00:53 Yes, it's a reminder that the real physical world,
00:55 with its atoms and molecules, is always going to defeat you
00:58 further than the electronic world of AI that we got so obsessed with.
01:03 Yes, it was at the O2 Arena, the Millennium Dome, as it was.
01:07 And, yeah, I was giving this lecture and when I finished it,
01:10 I took my bow, walked off stage,
01:13 not knowing that the part of the stage I was walking off
01:15 had a six-foot drop onto concrete.
01:17 Oh! I know, it was grim.