BBC Dragons' Den star Duncan Bannatyne left 'fighting for his life' after dragonfly bite

BBC Dragons' Den star Duncan Bannatyne experienced a life-threatening situation after being stung by a dragonfly while on holiday in Mexico last month, he has said. The millionaire entrepreneur went into anaphylactic shock following the sting, which initially presented as a severe infection in his hand.

Duncan recounted the harrowing experience, saying: "I almost died in Mexico just a few weeks ago. I got this infection in my hand, it was a bite and it swelled up. And everyone said you need a doctor, so I got the doctor, I lay on the bed and he said he's going to give me an injection because it's a dragonfly.

"He injected me into my hip. I was lying on my back, my wife was there, he was there, they were chatting. And I had this dryness come in my oesophagus, my throat, I was like 'it's so dry' I couldn't speak. My heart started going bum, bum, bum, and I'm going arrrrgh."

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"Luckily the doctor hadn't left the room and saw me and he knew what had happened. I'd had an anaphylactic shock. I was already thinking about (my will) but that made me more keen on it (planning)."

Duncan, who was with his third wife Nigora, aged 43, also shared his newfound focus on planning for the future: "Something I am obsessed with is planning my will. When I'm gone, what happens.", reports Birmingham Live.

"At some time in your life someone who is very old will say 'listen when I die I want you to do this..' and you say 'don't talk about dying' and 'mum don't tell me that' but now I want to do it! I want to put the plans in place."

Anaphylaxis is a severe, potentially fatal allergic reaction. It can occur within seconds or minutes after exposure to something you're allergic to, such as peanuts or bee stings.

During anaphylaxis, the immune system releases a flood of chemicals that can cause the body to go into shock.