A popular Angus entertainer is recovering in hospital after suffering a heart attack during a live lockdown charity performance – before taking the mic again to prove the adage that the show must go on.
Alan Mowatt took unwell during the latest in the Live Fae Oor Living Room Facebook music sessions that he and wife Val have been staging from their Arbroath home over the past two months to raise money for the NHS.
The 61-year-old, who is well known locally for his Rat Pack style performances, was midway through Friday night’s two-hour show when illness stuck.
After a glass of water and a break of just a couple of minutes, Alan felt fit enough to carry on, but when the Facebook Live feed ended he was rushed by ambulance to Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital.
The couple say they have been overwhelmed by the kindness of wellwishers as Alan undergoes further tests in hospital, with the possibility of bypass surgery being carried out.
The couple had just finished a duet of Moon River when Alan felt unwell, but within minutes he was back on screen.
“I knew something was wrong and even made a joke about him passing out on me, but after a couple of minutes he said he was fine to carry on,” said Val.
Yet to realise the seriousness of the problem he had encountered, Alan immediately returned to top form with the opening line of ‘How lucky can one guy be?’ from the Dean Martin hit, Ain’t That a Kick in the Head.
Val said: “We called NHS 24 after the show and they immediately thought he’d had a heart attack.
“NHS Tayside certainly came up trumps, which he joked was actually a bit ironic since we’ve been singing to raise money for the NHS during the pandemic.
“It’s been very stressful and we are waiting to find out the outcome of lots more tests, but it has meant so much to see all the support for Alan and that has really helped us,” added Val.
Alan and pal Phil Petrie have also been entertaining neighbours around Arboath’s Charles Avenue with weekly open-air performances during lockdown.
Among the many messages for a speedy recovery have been those of Alan’s fellow band members Ian Lamb and Tony Simpson of the Arbroath group, Slipway, and dozens of people who have enjoyed the singer’s performances as part of the That’s Life sell-out concerts in the Angus town.
