“Listen…”: Philippe Bouvard in a wheelchair, the 94-year-old host says more about his condition

On Saturday November 30, 2024, Philippe Bouvard was in the spotlight in Cannes, at the Théâtre de la Croisette. The former emblematic presenter of Big Heads came to present a preview of a documentary entitled The 1001 lives of Philippe Bouvardby Fabrice Gardel, which will be broadcast in January on Paris Première. He appeared on stage in a wheelchair. For the occasion, Laurent Marsick contacted him for his show Let yourself be tempted (RTL) in order to get news.

Philippe Bouvard “a little soft”

The host unsurprisingly quickly asked Philippe Bouvard how he felt. “Listen, as one can go when one enters one's 96th year. I'm a little soft“, replied his guest. He then spoke about his documentary The 1001 lives of Philippe Bouvard which traces its journey. The emblematic figure of journalism recalls that he has done all the jobs. “So these are different professional lives, it was a different facet each time“, he added.

Philippe Bouvard then confided that he had to “wish for a few more quiet years, with family and far from all the conferences“. Years away from work because, let's remember, he had set himself the goal of retiring on January 1, 2025. “There is a temptation, which is not a temptation of laziness, but a temptation of record, and that is to go until January 1st, that will not be bad enough, and then to listen to others and do silence“, he wrote last June in his Sunday column in VSD.

His state of health was worrying

Last October, his state of health caused concern. In question? The fact that Philippe Bouvard was not able to write his column. “Our friend Philippe Bouvard, a little tired – he must celebrate his 96th birthday on December 6 -, was not able to give us his column“, wrote the media. And added that it was a “first in more than 70 years of career“. A few days later, a relative told VSD that he had undergone surgery requiring anesthesia. “The operation went very well. He tolerated the anesthesia well. He woke up well. He left the service at the beginning of the week and is now resting in a suitable establishment. He should stay in recovery for about three weeks Obviously, everything takes longer, it's no secret, he's not a young man anymore.“, he was told to the media.