Ray Meagher has made a "terrific recovery" following his triple heart bypass and now feels "great".
Ray Meagher
The 'Home and Away' legend went under the knife for a triple heart bypass three months ago after he was left breathless while climbing a fairly steep hill, but he has now made a full recovery.
He said: "I had a triple bypass 11 weeks ago. It's been a terrific recovery.
"I've been seeing the cardiologist every year for a check-up. Each year when I do the stress test on the treadmill they'd say, 'There's something there. But you haven't got any symptoms?' I'd say, 'No, no symptoms, I feel pretty good.'
"They'd say, 'We'll keep an eye on it, come back in a year and we'll see how we go.'
"After 10 years, this year, just before I went in for a check-up I was doing a little walk around the harbour and up a fairly steep hill and I got a bit breathless. For the first time ever I stopped and took a breather.
"The next day I said, 'Mate, I've got great news for you. You've been looking for symptoms for 10 years and I've now got them. Isn't that good?'
"I had an angiogram, and they got the chainsaw out the next morning and away they went."
The 75-year-old actor has urged anyone experiencing similar symptoms to speak to their doctor.
He said: "I did [take it easy] for a while after surgery, but I've been gradually building up to what I was doing before. And I feel great now.
"I'd just say to anybody out there who has any sort of symptoms, 'Don't mess about. It'll get you if you don't get it first.' "
Ray has played Alf Stewart on the Australian soap since the first-ever episode in 1988, and he praised former 'Home and Away' and now-Hollywood actor Chris Hemsworth for being a "lovely young bloke" when he appeared on the programme during his younger years.
Speaking on 'Lorraine', he added: "Guys like Chris Hemsworth, who is probably the biggest star we've had through the place, he was such a lovely young bloke. Really nice bloke.
"He could do it as well when he got there. He was a good actor.
"He used it as a learning curve and the rest is history."