Richard Hammond reveals how wife Mindy helped bring him out of coma after crash

Richard Hammond ended up in a coma back in 2006 after a car crash and he later suggested that his wife Mindy Hammond helped wake him up after her efforts at his bedside

Richard Hammond teased that his wife Amanda 'Mindy' Hammond helped bring him out of a coma.

The presenter, 55, announced on Thursday that he has separated from columnist Mindy, 59, after almost three decades together. The former couple revealed in a joint statement, shared by him, their marriage is now "coming to end".

Their relationship has attracted attention over the years, including after he was involved in a car crash whilst filming Top Gear in 2006. Richard experienced a brain injury and ended up in a coma in intensive care for a few weeks.

Richard later suggested that Mindy's "screaming" at his bedside helped awaken him from the coma. He reflected on the experience in a video uploaded to YouTube in 2022, in which he recalled what he dreamt about in the coma.

He shared that he had been experiencing a "dream" that was "really vivid" whilst "a lot of morphine" flowed through his system towards the end of his time in the coma. He said that it involved him walking in the Lake District.

The former Grand Tour host said: "I was having a lovely time strolling along and gradually I got a growing sense of ... y'know when you know you're in trouble when you're a teenager staying out just that bit too late. You're not definitely in massive trouble yet but you're in a bit of trouble." He said that that feeling "grew and grew".

Richard, who was filming the video in the location of his dream, continued by saying that he walked up a slope in the countryside towards a tree. He said that as he got closer to the tree, he felt that he "really" was in "trouble". He added that the feeling continued to grow, before saying: "Until eventually in my dream I turned back - I didn't walk round this tree and carry on, and I woke [from the coma]."

He went on to share that he told Mindy about the 'dream' once he was out of the coma and she then shared "her side of the story". Richard said: "At the same time I was having that dream, she'd been called into intensive care." He said that she was told: "It's not looking good. We think we're gonna lose him."

Richard said that Mindy asked if there was anything she could do but was told "not really". He said that she then asked if she could "really shout" at him. He added: "And she did. And apparently she roared and screamed and swore at me 'don't you dare die'. And that's when I turned back from this tree in my dream. And that's when I woke."

The former couple's history has attracted attention again this week following the news of their separation. Richard announced their separation in a statement from himself and Mindy on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday afternoon.

It read: "A little update from us; this Christmas we were together as a family and this year we will still be a family but just structured a bit differently. Our marriage is coming to end, but we've had an amazing 28 years together and two incredible daughters. We will always be in each other's lives and are proud of the family we created. We won't be commenting further and sincerely hope that our privacy and that of our children will be respected at this time. With Love, Richard and Mindy."

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