The Voice UK host Emma Willis has revealed she lived unknowingly with a congenital hole in her heart for 48 years before undergoing successful keyhole surgery, ahead of her return to ITV screens tonight for the latest series of the singing competition.
The Voice UK presenter Emma Willis has spoken about discovering a serious heart condition she had unknowingly lived with for almost five decades. The 50-year-old returns to screens tonight, Saturday, 22 August, to host the latest series of the ITV singing competition, joined on the coaching panel by Destiny’s Child star Kelly Rowland, alongside returning coaches Sir Tom Jones, will.i.am, and McFly duo Danny Jones and Tom Fletcher. Willis underwent successful keyhole heart surgery in early 2025, after routine medical checks uncovered a congenital hole in her heart and an enlarged area that had gone unnoticed for 48 years.
How the condition was discovered
According to Willis, the condition first came to light following routine health checks, which included an MRI scan that revealed an enlarged heart. Further investigation by a cardiologist subsequently identified the underlying congenital defect, a hole in her heart she had lived with, unaware, since birth.
The mother-of-three went on to undergo a keyhole procedure at the Royal Brompton Hospital. While she recovered well physically following the surgery, Willis has previously said the psychological adjustment to processing the internal changes that had taken place in her heart took longer to come to terms with.
Willis’s tribute to medical staff
Sharing photographs from her hospital stay on Instagram following the procedure, Willis paid tribute to the team who cared for her. “A big humungous THANK YOU to the team at the Royal Brompton Hospital for their care and support,” she wrote. “A few weeks ago, I had keyhole heart surgery, which feels very strange to write, and even stranger when I say it out loud.”
She went on to describe the care she received throughout the process: “From investigations last year, to diagnosis and then surgery, they were absolutely incredible.” She also credited her husband, musician Matt Willis, with supporting her throughout, adding that he “never left my side.”
‘Isn’t it bonkers what’s happening in our bodies’
Reflecting on the discovery itself, Willis expressed disbelief at having lived so long without realising anything was wrong. “Turns out, I’ve been pottering around for 48 years blissfully unaware I had a hole in my heart,” she wrote. “Isn’t it bonkers what’s happening in our bodies that we have no idea about.”
She also spoke of her admiration for the medical professionals who carried out her surgery, writing: “What blows my mind even more is the wonders of modern medicine, and the spectacular people that save, fix and help us every single day. Can you imagine what it must feel like to have a pair of hands that can do that job?! They are the real superstar.”
Back on screens tonight
Willis’s health update comes as she prepares to front the latest series of The Voice UK this evening, with the show’s new coaching line-up bringing together Kelly Rowland, Sir Tom Jones, will.i.am, and McFly’s Danny Jones and Tom Fletcher for the upcoming series.
