John Blackman shares hospital bed photo as he prepares for more cancer surgery

Hey Hey It’s Saturday star John Blackman is preparing to go under the knife yet again today, following extensive surgery 18-months ago which saw the star lose his jaw bone, and temporarily his iconic voice.

The television and radio legend went under the knife in September 2018 to have his entire jaw removed, then reconstructed using bone from his thigh in a gruelling 11-hour operation, after being diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer.

Now, John has revealed he is preparing to go under the knife yet again to have another skin graft to form a “gutter”, which surgeons hope will help the star to control his dribbling. He shared the news on Facebook alongside a photograph of himself in hospital, which was taken in July 2019 following a different procedure.

“My website, Facebook and Twitter postings will be inactive for a few days as I prepare for another round of facial and dental surgery at The Alfred,” he wrote. “To paraphrase Jeff Fenech, ‘I love youse all – see you on the other side’.”

John opened up about the impending surgery on Nine News on Thursday evening, as he revealed that while he may sound and look awful, he’s actually a “very, very healthy 72-year-old”.

“I am counting my blessings in a way, as I say to myself there are so many people far worse off, it’s been since birth and they have to face it every day,” he told reporter Brett McLeod. “It’s only been 18 months and it’s gone like that.”

Describing his upcoming procedure, which will take place at Melbourne hospital The Alfred on Friday, the star then joked that he hoped the skin graft wasn’t going to be taken from his backside.

He added: “I’m pretty determined that I will get back in front of a crowd and back in front of a microphone, but I’ve got to go through a whole learning process again. I’m looking forward to it in a funny sort of perverse way.”

#EXCLUSIVE: Aussie broadcasting great John Blackman lost his jaw, and for a while his voice, 18 months ago due to cancer – and now he's set go under the knife again. @Brett_McLeod #9News pic.twitter.com/RRRNlN9xhL

— 9News Sydney (@9NewsSyd) February 27, 2020

John first revealed that he had been secretly battling cancer in an emotional interview with A Current Affair in early September 2018, as he revealed that it had slowly spread around his mouth and into his jaw bone..

Sitting alongside his wife Cecile, John revealed the shock diagnosis and pointed out the tumour which had caused one side of his mouth to become visibly swollen. It was during that interview that John revealed he would have to have his entire jaw bone removed in a bid to stop the cancer from spreading, with doctors warning that it could spread to his brain if not treated immediately.