Bruce Dickinson has revealed he underwent hip replacement surgery after being diagnosed with osteoarthritis.
The Iron Maiden frontman – who is known for his energetic live performances that see him run and jump all over the stage – has revealed he was in agony on the band’s ‘Legacy of the Beast World Tour’, which began in 2018, and managed to disguise the fact he was in serious pain and couldn’t even “walk properly” by toning down his moves.
Bruce told Download Festival’s host Kylie Olsson before the ‘Download: Reloaded’ special, which airs on Sky Arts next week, that: “I put it down to the fact that during the last tour, just shortly before the last tour, I also broke my Achilles as well — my Achilles tendon snapped … It’s horrible. That was two years ago, basically. So I got that stitched back together and went out on tour three and a half months later. I couldn’t actually walk properly or run. So I modified what I did on stage, and nobody figured it out. I was amazed.
“I did the whole tour — South America, the whole lot — and I ran around. But my hip was giving me so much s***. And I put it down to the fact that people were telling me, ‘You’re compensating for the other leg,’ and everything else, and I thought, ‘Oh, yeah. That’s it, then.'”
The 62-year-old rocker and fencer refused to give in and returned home to Paris to start fencing again, before “seizing up”.
He continued: “So then I get back and I start training again seriously — doing my fencing, doing some competitions — and it’s just seizing up … it was giving me so much s***.”
The ‘Run to the Hills’ hitmaker tried to treat the pain with Ibuprofen, but ended up getting “addicted” to the anti-inflammatory drug.
Bruce finally gave in and asked the doctor if he could have hip surgery before the band’s next tour, and the heavy metal legend admitted it was the best decision he’s ever made, as he’s subsequently been able to lift weights and exercise like he did when he was a teenager with his new hip.
He added: “I was getting addicted to Ibuprofen and all the rest of it, and it p***** me off so much. I was just, like, ‘Look, it’s not gonna get any better, is it?’ And he went, ‘No.’ So I said, ‘It’s October. When the safety car comes out, [Lewis] Hamilton goes in for fresh tires. So let’s do it now in October, because I might have a tour next year.’ Little did I know. But being an eternal optimist, it was the best thing I’ve done.
“So now, with my new hip, I’m back to fencing again. It’s absolutely incredible. I’ve been doing physio and doing weights that I haven’t done since I was 16 or 17 years old. I’m squatting a hundred kilos. It’s mental what your body can do.”