Ricky Gervais says he’s ‘lived through the worst eight hours of illness’

Ricky Gervais has given fans a health update after “living through the worst eight hours of illness” of his life.

On Thursday (11 May), the After Life star, 61, tweeted he isn’t “well today” and shared that he was suffering from symptoms such as severe abdominal pains, vomiting, hot sweats, and chills.

“Oh, and I really want to know who planted the 12 gravy bombs up my a***,” Gervais quipped.

Some Twitter users suggested he might be suffering from norovirus – or the “winter vomitting bug” – in the comments section.

“Sounds like it is Noravirus [sic] that is going around. My friend and my daughter and son-in-law have had it. It is awful. Hope you get better soon,” one person said.

Gervais replied: “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

Another person wrote: “Eight hours seems like a magic number when I get norovirus. I’m good for a full shift every time.”

Other fans joked about the abundance of detail in Gervais’s descriptive post, with one person calling it the “perfect sick note”.

“Just copy and paste that description, and voilà – you’ve got yourself a guaranteed day off. Even your boss will be too terrified to question it,” the comment read.

In March this year, the number of norovirus cases in England rose to their highest levels in nearly a decade. The count fell from its peak shortly after but remained above levels reported in March 2022.

Norovirus is one of the most common kinds of stomach bugs in Britain, and reportedly affects between 600,000 and a million people in the UK every year.

The six most common symptoms include sudden onset of nausea, projectile vomiting, diarrhoea, high temperature, abdominal pain, and aching limbs.

It spreads from contact with an infected person or contaminated surfaces.

Most people who contract the virus will recover within two to three days. Norovirus, however, can cause dehydration, especially among the very young, elderly, and those with weakened immune systems.