Despite two lots of heart surgery in a year, Aussie TV icon Ray Meagher refuses to let it hold him back.
“I’ve never felt better,” Ray, 76, tells Woman’s Day from his Sydney home.
The Home And Away star had a triple-bypass in early 2019 after doctors found three serious blockages in his coronary artery. And while the surgery was deemed a success, Ray underwent a second operation seven months later after he felt a “tickle” in his chest while out on a walk.
“It was just a build-up of bad living for 40 years and having too much fun,” he reveals.
Despite the invasive surgery, just like Alf Stewart – his staunch character on Home And Away – Ray refused to slow down and was back at work eight weeks later.
Wife Gilly keeps him on the straight and narrow.
(Image: AAP Image/Tracey Nearmy)“I’m a pretty pragmatic sort of a bloke – I just get on with it,” he says.
Ray now ensures he gets his steps up every day and has pulled back on some of his vices – however he isn’t about to let a couple of health scares ruin all the fun.
“I drink a lot less beer now but still sometimes have a bit more than is deemed good,” he admits.
“You know when you meet up with mates and have a bit of a yarn and a bit of a drink? I still like to have those nights occasionally.”
“I’ve never felt better,” the Home And Away actor tells us.
(Image: Channel Seven)As well as a few lifestyle tweaks, Ray cites his wife of 10 years Gilly – who previously worked as a nurse – as a major factor in his recovery.
“She was a life-saver,” he says of his adoring spouse. “And she keeps me on the straight and narrow now.”
But don’t expect to see him waving goodbye to Summer Bay any time soon.
“I’m very happy with where work is at – as the surgeon told me, I’ve got a fully reconditioned motor now and I should be right for another 100,000 miles!”
The veteran actor says he plans to be sticking out his role as Alf Stewart for the foreseeable future.
(Image: Getty)