He said: ‘I always try and dive off a boat on every holiday because at my age you never know when your last dive is going to be, or your last anything, for that matter.’

The dive turned into a belly flop, with Jeremy explaining: ‘When I finally reached the beach my lungs were full of water and I realised I can’t do it any more.’

After noticing worrying symptoms when he returned home, Jeremy was rushed in for a life-changing operation – an angioplasty to insert stents. A consultant told him he might have been days from death before the procedure.

After the procedure, Jeremy revealed how he was forced to undergo ‘horrific’ lifestyle changes, saying he’s ‘not allowed to have fun any more’.

‘The worst problem though is diet. To cut my alarmingly high levels of cholesterol, I need to cut out, completely, everything I like eating,’ he explained in his column for The Sun.

‘Bacon, sausages, beef, lamb, pork, butter, chips, proper milk, Cadbury’s fruit and nut bars and the interesting bit in an egg. I’ve had a week now to live in the new regime and it’s horrific. Have you ever tried kale? Well, don’t, because it’s like eating the contents of a AAA battery.’

Then explaining his hatred of Greek yoghurt and almond milk, Jeremy lamented how he has to cut out drinking alcohol and take up exercising.

‘I’ve always seen this is something you do when travelling from the car to the pub, or from the lunch table to the sitting room. But apparently, when I’ve recovered from the operation, I must do more,’ he wrote.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

ArrowMORE: Jeremy Clarkson’s glamorous new farmhand replacing Kaleb Cooper revealed

ArrowMORE: ITV dating show set for reboot 16 years later ‘thanks to Jeremy Clarkson’

ArrowMORE: Clarkson’s Farm fans ‘screaming’ after shock Grand Tour reunion in new trailer