Mr Unbelievable

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Dad ruled his house with an iron fist. I loved him because he was my dad, but his volatile temperament, which often spilled over into violence, could make life difficult. Only later did I realize this wasn’t how all homes worked. Despite everything, my mum was the most loyal wife you could imagine. His elation was evident – and very infectious. Anne and I were jumping for joy. We knew I was so much better, but to see the scans, the evidence in pictures, was amazing. We were on cloud nine. All in all, I was 75% of how I used to be. They tell me I’ll continue to improve over the coming months. If that’s the case, bring it on! Mum was my world - but I wasn’t there to say goodbye He became terrified of having to talk – offscreen as well as on. And all the time he was telling people nothing was wrong. The pretence must have been exhausting. “Well, it was playing with my mind. You go crazy. The first thing when you wake up is: can I speak today? If the delivery man comes to the door, can I talk to him? The old me used to have a laugh and a joke with him. Now I’m a bumbling old man who can’t get his words out. My self-esteem was at its lowest ever point and that’s when you think of crazy stuff in your head.”

He did quit Sky. When Stelling announced Kammy’s departure on Soccer Saturday, the anchor was almost in tears. Sky didn’t try to convince Kamara to stay, but many other TV shows were only too happy to hire him. He made a powerful ITV documentary, Lost for Words, about his condition last year. Earlier this year, he appeared on The Masked Singer. Now he says he’s got almost as many offers of work as he had before he developed the condition. A while ago one company told him they were going to have to speed up his voice for a commercial. “I said, ‘Yeah, do it’ but I was thinking, ‘Is this what it’s come to?’ Now I don’t worry. There’s no hiding it. They know when they employ me it’s not the old Kammy they’re getting; they get the new one now.”A few weeks ago I found myself on the floor at Dallas Fort Worth Airport, where me and Anne were changing planes on our way from Heathrow to Mexico. It was about a half-mile walk to the departure gate, and after a few hundred yards my body began to seize up. He told his close friend Ben Shephard, with whom he co-presented Ninja Warrior UK. Eventually he agreed to talk about his apraxia in an interview with Shephard on ITV’s Good Morning Britain. “I came out and did it with him, and it was the best day of my life from then on.” He was astonished by people’s understanding, kindness and warmth. Finally, it made sense to his fans. Perhaps the worst occasion was when he went on The One Show to promote his second Christmas album. He could hardly get a word out. He couldn’t remember the name of the album or the songs on it. On the train home, the conductor, who he knew well, asked how he was doing. Again he couldn’t get his words out. “Oh, you’ve had one or two, I’ll leave you alone,” the conductor said. It was when he went to spend time with the animals that the darkest thoughts came. “You think you’re a burden and the family will be better off without you. That came at the height of my condition, 18 months in, when I thought it was dementia. I didn’t want to be a burden – I’d spent my life looking after them.”

But despite the crazy tales, it hasn't all been plain sailing. Kammy had a tough upbringing, faced racism during his playing career and has, in recent years, dealt with a rare brain condition – apraxia – that has affected his speech and seen him say goodbye to Sky Sports. Relating his battle against the condition, Kammy shows how he’s met every challenge with courage, determination and his infectious smile.

Good Morning Britain host Ben Shephard, a friend of Kammy, who has worked with him down the years, received praise for the support he has offered the former footballer. The much-loved football personality was on Thursday's show to promote his new book My Unbelievable Life and he shared with viewers his health battle in recent years.

As has been well-documented, Kammy, 65, has seen his speech impacted following his apraxia diagnosis. He has campaigned for the government to increase speech therapy support for those with impediments.In the match, when Stelling came to him for an update, he could barely speak. “My heart palpitated. I’d never known anything like it. It felt as if it was coming out of my chest. And I couldn’t get my tongue around the words.” He sounds traumatised just revisiting it. “It was so difficult. Jeff came to me and a goal was scored and I kept the commentary as short as possible.” Nobody on the team mentioned what had happened, so he thought he’d got away with it. “I thought maybe it’s not as bad as I think it is. No one said, ‘Are you OK?’ No one said, ‘What’s up with you?’ No one said, ‘Have you been drinking?’ Nothing. So I started to think maybe something’s playing with my head, so you just move on. And that’s what I did.” With friend and Ninja Warrior UK co-presenter Ben Shephard in February. Photograph: Darren Pepe/Mirrorpix The former midfielder, who also captained Stoke, now runs the Proper Football podcast alongside Shephard on BBC Sounds.

He joined the Royal Navy at the age of sixteen, before signing up with Portsmouth FC in 1974. He went on to represent several other clubs, including Swindon Town, Brentford, Leeds United, Middlesborough, Stoke City, Luton Town, Sheffield Utd and Bradford City, before he retired in the mid-1990s. Following his retirement from playing, Kamara became a manager, first at Bradford City and then a brief spell at Stoke City. Day 28 was soon here. In the afternoon I had a call from Dr Trujillo. He was excited to tell me my brain had reacted to the treatment to the extent that I now had 2,000-plus more neural pathways (the bundles of fibres which connect one area of the nervous system to another) than when I’d arrived.While @emmajane1989x added: “Oh kammy! I absolutely adore you!!” Another viewer @theo_samuels said: “Kammy, you've got absolutely nothing to be ashamed about your condition. Nothing. Keep being you. #GMB.” Former Stoke City player and manager, Chris Kamara has seen a flood of support on social media after he broke down in tears after an appearance on Good Morning Britain. But when the walls are closing in it's easy to feel differently. I hope by being honest and talking about it, I can help others see that there is always another way out. There is always hope. You just have to let other people help you see it."