Comedian, actor and former Great British Bake Off presenter Matt Lucas has been a regular on our screens since the 90s and has had a successful career on TV and screen.
TV and film career
First appearing alongside Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer in Shooting Stars, he made a name for himself as the character George Dawes where he would dress as a giant baby in a romper suit.
He is most famous for the sketch show, Little Britain, where he took on the role of numerous characters. While the series was very successful, it was highly criticised for its treatment of women and minority groups.
Most recently, Matt has presented The Great British Bake Off, replacing Sandi Toksvig alongside fellow presenter Noel Fielding and judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood. Sadly he announced in December 2022 that he would be stepping down from his role on the show.
As well as his successful TV career, he has also appeared in a number of films including Alice in Wonderland, Gnomeo and Juliet and Bridesmaids to name a few.
Matt Lucas weight loss
If you regularly watch Bake Off, you'll have noticed that in recent years, Matt has lost quite a bit of weight. Despite being surrounded by all sorts of delicious snacks and cakes on the show, he's managed to change his diet, crediting lockdown for his change in lifestyle.
Speaking to Lorraine Kelly, he said: "I lost some weight, I needed to take the edge off, because I put on a lot of weight in lockdown. I've still got a bit of a tum. I'm not a skinny minnie."
He's credited his weight loss to his housemate and personal trainer, Jamie Barnard. Not only has Matt found it's great for his physical health, but his mental health too.
Matt Lucas partner
Matt has revealed he knew he was gay from a very young age. In 2006, he entered a civil partnership with his then-partner, Kevin McGee. Their relationship however didn't work out, and their civil partnership was dissolved in 2008. Tragically, Kevin took his own life in 2009.
In 2019, Matt shared this very moving message about Kevin, 'This is Kevin John McGee, who died ten years ago today. I loved him more than anyone I’ve ever met, and still do. He was so funny and silly and clever and kind and handsome and his smile made my heart soar. We were together for nearly six years and he made me the happiest man on the planet. In the end he lost his battle with addiction and depression. I guess some people don’t have the armour for this world. I think of him probably a hundred times a day, every day. In truth, I think of little else. I would give anything to see him again and maybe one day I will, but for now I will be grateful for the time we had together and the love we shared. It was like no other.'
It isn't known if Matt is in a new relationship, and he remains very private when it comes to his love life.
Matt Lucas illness
He has been very open about his alopecia, and doctors initially believed the condition came on from shock following a car accident in his younger years. This meant that he was bald for much of his childhood, something which caused him to receive much attention as a boy.
Growing up, he underwent a range of treatments, all of which were unsuccessful, and it was eventually discovered that he had an overactive immune system which also caused his struggles with asthma, eczema, hay fever and allergies as a child.