Bez 'thought he was going to die' after being hospitalised with Covid-19
He made a full recovery
Last updated 3rd Aug 2021
Happy Mondays star Bez has opened up about his experience with Covid-19. Mark Berry, aka Bez, revealed that he thought he “was going to die” when he contracted the virus in March 2020.
In an interview with the Daily Star, the dancer said he was hospitalised with Coronavirus a week before it was announced as a global pandemic.
The Mancunian told the newspaper’s Wired column: “I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t tell if it was my heart or my lungs.”
“I got to the hospital and I said, ‘I’ve been having this heart attack for three days’ and they plugged me into the machines and everything and I had a swollen heart and a virus. I really seriously thought I was going to die.”
Before contracting the virus, Bez has been in training for a boxing match against former Manchester United star Clayton Blackmore.
57-year-old Bez, who has since launched his YouTube fitness series ‘Get Buzzin’ with Bez’, credited this strict exercise regime to aiding his full recovery from the virus.
He said: “I continued my juicing and taking my vitamin C, drinking my apple cider vinegar and I did get over it very, very quickly.”
Bez wasn’t the only member of the legendary Manchester band to be diagnosed with Covid-19, as frontman Shaun Ryder was reportedly struck with the virus months later.
Despite not outright confirming he had the virus, speaking about his experience last March, Shaun said him and his wife were “floored” by the symptoms.
Bez appeared alongside his good friend and bandmate Shaun in the latest series of Celebrity Gogglebox. Bez added: “Shaun had it for like three weeks.
“He was hallucinating and having visitations from the aliens telling him he would be all right. I was quite worried about old Shaun as he isn’t the healthiest man in the world.
“I’ve always told him to take Vitamin C and all that but he says, ‘I’m allergic to it.’ But it transpired he could only eat fruit as he was that ill, and he has alopecia so all his hair has fallen out, but from only eating fruit and getting his Vitamin C his hair started growing back. Like I told him, ‘It was a COVID miracle.’”
Last week, Bez made his vocal debut and released his ode to Madchester ‘Flying Bus’, alongside producer DJ Doorly.
Bez is also set to take part in the forthcoming series of Celebrity Masterchef, alongside stars including Dion Dublin, Melanie Sykes and Penny Lancaster.
Take a look at these bands who were on legendary label Factory Records, including Happy Mondays:
Joy Division
Formed in Salford in 1976, Joy Division changed music forever. The group consisted of lead vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris.
Sumner and Hook were inspired to form a band after attending a now-historic Sex Pistols concert at Manchester's Lesser Free Trade Hall in 1976. They were inspired by the early Punk movement and went on to become post-Punk pioneers with songs like 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', 'Disorder' and 'Transmission'.
New Order
New Order was born out of the demise of Joy Division, following the death of lead singer Ian Curtis in 1980. Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris continued to make music, before being joined by keyboardist Gillian Morris later that year.
They were the flagship band for Factory Records and the Hacienda nightclub. Their masterpiece 'Blue Monday' became the top-selling 12" single of all time and continues to be a favourite of music fans today. Although Peter Hook left the outfit in 2007, New Order continue to play shows to huge crowds.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, or OMD, were formed in Merseyside in 1978 and signed to Tony Wilson's Factory Records in 1979 prior to the release of their debut single 'Electricity'.
The band created forward-thinking electronic music and were inspired by artists including Kraftwerk, David Bowie, Brian Eno and label-mates Joy Division. Their stand-out track 'Enola Gay' was released in September 1980.
Happy Mondays
Formed in Salford in 1980, the band's original line-up consisted of Shaun Ryder, Paul Ryder, Mark Day, Paul Davis and Gary Whelan, before Mark 'Bez' Berry joined shortly after the vocalist Rowetta joined the band in 1990.
Their music helped create a bridge between the UK's independent scene and the dance and rave culture which was emanating out of Manchester's legendary Hacienda nightclub.
They released a total of five studio albums, most notably 'Bummed' in 1988 and 'Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches' in 1990.
The Durutti Column
The Durutti Column formed in Manchester in 1978 and were one of the first acts to be signed to the Factory label.
Lead by guitarist Vini Reilly, he was also joined by Bruce Mitchell on drums and Keir Stewart on bass, keyboards and harmonica.
James
Although not officially signed to Factory, James released their first two singles 'Jimone' (1983) and 'James II' (1985) on the label, before signing with Sire Records.
They have had huge hits during their career including 'Come Home', 'Sit Down' and 'Laid'.
Read more:
Bez makes vocal debut on brand-new house collaboration
6 of our favourite Factory Records bands 🎶