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Martin Kemp feared he would die as he banned his family from visiting him in hospital during a terrifying health battle. The Spandau Ballet bassist was diagnosed with two brain tumours in the 1990s. It forced Martin , 64, to give up his acting career for a while and quit life in Los Angeles for the United Kingdom . The musician had moved to LA with wife Shirlie to pursue a career in Hollywood. His first acting appearance, in The Krays alongside brother Gary, was held to critical acclaim. It led Martin to land parts in the likes of Waxwork II: Lost in Time and Embrace of the Vampire. But in 1995 Martin says medics discovered he had two benign tumours. He described the news as “like a car crash” having suddenly found himself undergoing surgery to remove the tumours. Speaking to The Times , Martin said: “There were times when I wasn’t going to make it. One minute I was working harder than I’ve ever done, then all of a sudden I was on the operating table. It’s like a car crash; it comes out of nowhere. “It all went wonky for about five years. It was terrifying for my family. I remember lying in hospital and I had to stop them from coming in because they were scaring me too.” Martin eventually returned to acting in 1998 when he landed a role in The Bill. He was later cast as businessman Steve Owen in BBC soap EastEnders . Martin’s three-year stint on the hit soap saw him named as the Most Popular Actor at the 2000 National Television Awards and Villain of the Year at the British Soap Awards in the same year. Despite Martin’s career flourishing after his health scare, he believes the tumours left him struggling with dyslexia. He says he can even struggle to work out street names when out and about. The NHS estimates around one in 10 people in the United Kingdom have some form of dyslexia. It can lead to issues with reading, writing, spelling and even navigation. Martin opened up about how his dyslexia impacts his daily life on the FFS! My dad is Martin Kemp podcast, which he hosts with son Roman. It came after Roman discovered over 50 per cent of his dad’s phone use is dedicated to Maps. Martin explained: “I am completely dyslexic, I struggle to read terribly. But my dyslexia, because it came from a physical thing that happened in my brain, it wasn't just about what I can read and what I can't read and stumble, it's about me finding my way as well. "I have dyslexia when it comes to thinking what street is in front of another street. So everywhere I go, even if it's just around to my local shops, I use my maps. That all goes back to the brain injury that I had." The soapstar has previously revealed his spell on EastEnders “saved his life”. Speaking to the BBC, he said: “All of my friends, all of them said - when I got offered the part in EastEnders as Steve Owen - they all said 'Don't do it, it'll ruin your career.' “But what they didn't understand was I didn't have a career. I was coming out of a four-year period that was probably the darkest moments in my life. And this show saved my life."
