Max George revealed on Thursday that he has been hospitalised with a heart condition, explaining that he will have to undergo surgery over the festive period.
The singer, 36, has had a tumultuous time in recent years, struggling with alcohol issues, his mental health and the loss of his bandmate, Tom Parker.
When The Wanted were formed in 2009, it catapulted Max, Tom, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness and Nathan Sykes to stardom.
They quickly became one of the biggest British boybands of the Noughties, even managing to break America with their hit single, Glad You Came.
Yet in the years that followed, the quintet have themselves facing a raft of challenges, suffering from ill health, physical attacks and addiction issues, most notably and tragically at all losing Tom to cancer in 2022.
Now takes a look at the miseries that have blighted the band’s success.
As Max George reveals he’s been hospitalised with ‘heart issues’ how The Wanted (L-R) Jay McGuiness, Max, Siva Kaneswaran, Tom Parker and Nathan Sykes has plagued by tragedy
Max George
After fighting crippling depression, alcoholism and the death of his bandmate, Max has revealed he faces a new battle, requiring heart surgery over Christmas.
The singer has admitted he is ‘very lucky that this was caught when it was’ as he revealed the health scare last night.
Fans are heartbroken and frightened for him as he faces a spell in hospital and an invasive procedure over the festive period.
Max hasn’t disclosed what the heart condition is, only that it was picked up during tests after feeling unwell and being taken to hospital.
He told fans: ‘Hey everyone, Yesterday I felt really unwell and was taken in to hospital.
‘Unfortunately after some tests they’ve found that I have some issues with my heart.
‘I have a lot more tests to determine the extent of the problems and what surgery I will need to get me back on my feet.
‘It’s gonna be a difficult few weeks / months… and Christmas in a hospital bed wasn’t exactly what I had planned!
‘But, as always, I’m surrounded with love and support by my wonderful partner Maisie [Smith], her family, my family and friends.. and I’m 100% in the best place.
‘Although this is a huge shock and no doubt a set back, it’s something I’ll take on with all I’ve got! I count myself very lucky that this was caught when it was.
‘Apologies if I bore you with updates in the coming weeks…. I’ve probably got a month in a bed and there’s not THAT much to do! Let’s do this! Much love, Max x’
After fighting crippling depression, alcoholism and the death of his bandmate, Max has revealed he faces a new battle, requiring heart surgery over Christmas
Max has been open about his battle with binge drinking and alcoholism over the years, previously admitting he drank ‘ten pints and three bottles of wine in one night’.
Last year, the singer revealed he used alcohol to ‘adapt’ to the spotlight and to help ease his anxiety during his ‘lowest ever point’.
The singer has also spoken about how he suffered from debilitating depression after his band The Wanted went on an indefinite hiatus.
Max had brain scans in hospital because he became so unwell – but had no clue his physical symptoms were brought on by mental illness.
Talking to Made In Chelsea’s Jamie Laing and Francis Boulle on their Private Parts podcast, Max said: ‘I had a three-month period in my life where I couldn’t leave my apartment without being sick.
‘My head was spinning. I couldn’t walk. So I ended up in hospital having scans on my brain and it was all down to being depressed.’
Max has also revealed how he nearly lost his sight to an eye infection 10 years ago, meaning part of his left eye had to be removed.
He also had problems with his right eye. He said at the time: ‘I can’t see properly out of my right. My left eye does all the work.’
Tom Parker
The music world was rocked in October 2020 when Tom announced he’d been diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma and was given just 12 months to live
Tragically, Tom passed away on March 30, 2022 at the age of 33, leaving behind his wife Kelsey and their two young children
The music world was rocked in October 2020 when Tom announced he’d been diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma and was given just 12 months to live.
11 months later, in September 2021, he sang at the Stand Up 2 Cancer show at the Royal Albert Hall and even set off with his bandmates on a Greatest Hits tour when his tumour was confirmed as ‘stable’.
He died on March 30, 2022 at the age of 33, leaving behind his wife Kelsey and their two young children.
In his last moment the singer listened to Oasis’ 1994 hit Live Forever, from their debut album Definitely Maybe.
Following his death Kelsey said: ‘It is with the heaviest of hearts that we confirm Tom passed away peacefully earlier today with all of his family by his side.
‘Our hearts are broken. Tom was the centre of our world and we can’t imagine life without his infectious smile and energetic presence.
‘We are truly thankful for the outpouring of love and support and ask that we all unite to ensure Tom’s light continues to shine for his beautiful children.’
She went on to thank everyone who has cared for Tom during his illness, adding that he fought the disease until the very end.
A statement posted on the band’s official Instagram account read: ‘The whole Wanted family are devastated by the tragic and premature loss of our bandmate Tom Parker, who passed away peacefully at lunchtime today surrounded by his family and his band mates.
‘Tom was an amazing husband to Kelsey, and father to Aurelia and Bodhi. He was our brother, words can’t express the loss and sadness we feel. Always and forever in our hearts.’
Jay McGuiness
Just three months after The Wanted split in January 2014, Jay was left fearing for his life after being held at knifepoint during an outing with Siva
Just three months after The Wanted split in January 2014, Jay was left fearing for his life after being held at knifepoint.
The singer – who has gone on to make a name for himself in the musical theatre world – was enjoying a holiday with Siva in Denver, Colorado when they approached by an attacker.
The pair had enjoyed watching Transcendence at the cinema but as they left the venue they were hassled by a man demanding money as he pulled out a knife on them.
According to TMZ, their assailant asked them for money and Siva obliged, giving him a few dollars, but he then demanded more and threatened them with the weapon.
With misinformation spiralling, Jay was quick to clear up the confusion on X/Twitter.
He shared: ‘To reassure you, we were NOT stabbed, but a guy in Denver did pull a knife out on us – do not worry, we were lucky & we still love Denver.’
Siva Kaneswaran
In a bad spell of luck, Siva found himself attacked again just five months after being held at knifepoint with Jay, this time punched in the face
In a bad spell of luck, Siva found himself attacked again just five months after being held at knifepoint.
The singer was in Chelsea, New York when he witnessed a man attacking his girlfriend and decided to intervene.
According to reports, Siva told the attacker to calm down, but the enraged man responded: ‘This isn’t about you!’
Yet Siva refused to back down and gallantly attempted to hold the attacker off so the woman could get away.
In turn he ended up getting punched in the face and was left with a black eye.
Speaking about the incident at the time, Siva told InTouch: ‘I am no hero, I just wanted to prevent her from being hit.’
Siva has since returned to the limelight, joining forces with Max to form The Wanted 2.0 after the remaining members declined to join.
It was an interesting combination, with Max and Siva first to admit that they weren’t ‘the closest’ in the band.
The pair famously fell out when the band split, with Max saying the split was down to growing tensions in the band, upsetting the other members.
Siva, in particular, voiced his anger at the time, as he revealed that the rest of the group had only found out about the interview via social media, slamming it as ‘disappointing’ and ‘uncalled for’.
Max also confirmed that filming their E! channel reality series The Wanted Life made things ‘very difficult, with specific mention of their their being friction with Siva’s fiancée Nareesha McCaffrey.
In response, Siva hit back at Max’s claims as ‘untrue and very unfair’ and admitted he was shocked by the interview.
Nathan Sykes
Nathan has spoken about the toll cyber bullies had on him, revealing he was the victim of an online hate campaign when he was just 17 and struggled with the backlash
Trolls came for Nathan after he was romantically linked to X Factor finalist Cher Lloyd in 2010
Nathan has spoken about the toll cyber bullies had on him, revealing he was the victim of an online hate campaign after being romantically linked to X Factor finalist Cher Lloyd in 2010.
At the time Nathan was just 17 and struggled with the backlash when the rumour surfaced during the TV talent contest.
But there was never a romance, despite reports to the contrary, but fans made their displeasure clear.
Nathan told The Razz: ‘The story that I was dating Cher Lloyd was completely made up. When I first met her in a studio, the rumour had been going around for about three weeks.
‘We said, “Hello.” And Cher said, “You’re meant to be my boyfriend. Nice to meet you.”
‘It affected my popularity. I lost about 6000 followers on Twitter and she got abusive tweets.’
Speaking about cyber bullying the following year, he shared: ‘I’m in a position where I’ve seen hate from people who maybe don’t like the band.
‘When the One Direction argument, or whatever it was, was going on between a few of the boys, for no reason I was suddenly getting death threats and stuff off young girls and I was quite confused by that.
‘I didn’t know what I’d done but then realised they associated me with the band. But the way they say things – the fact people can hide behind a computer screen, they’d never say it to your face.
‘They have that power, almost, of hiding behind a computer so they can be more expressive and a lot nastier.’