Largs cyclist to star in Channel 5 hospital documentary

Steve Donaldson, 61, features in The Hospital: Life on the Line, which follows dedicated staff at Scotland’s ‘heart hospital’, the Golden Jubilee in Clydebank.

The Channel 5 series is an eye-opening look at the work of heart transplant teams in action.

The hospital carries out around 1,400 cardiac surgery procedures per year. In 2022/23, it completed 40 heart transplants, the most in the UK.

Steve had a heart transplant 13 years ago after becoming seriously ill with heart failure.

However, the transplant has given him a new lease of life and he has been able to get back to the big passion in his life, competitive cycling.

Steve contracted a virus which weakened his heart muscle in 1981 which, he thought, had killed off his competitive cycling career. (Image: Channel 5)

Since his transplant he has represented the Great Britain transplant cycling team.

And in December last year, he was recognised with a prestigious award at the AGM of Cycling Scotland, the sport's Scottish governing body.

A strong cyclist as a youngster, Steve first suffered chest pains aged 18, but it wasn’t until 2010, aged 48, that he received successful heart transplant surgery.

It also allowed him to spend precious time with his wife, Linda, before she sadly died from breast cancer.

The 61-year-old features in the new documentary series about the Golden Jubilee (Image: Newsquest)

“Before she died," Steve said, "we were talking and she said 'you just go out and enjoy yourself'.

“So for once in my life, I’m doing what I’m told.

“This hospital is like my second home. It’s where I was reborn, in a way. They have become like a family.”

READ MORE: Award winning Largs cyclist thanks 'unknown hero' who saved his life

The first episode also features 54-year-old Andy McCafferty, from just outside Edinburgh, who is admitted to the cardiac unit after collapsing at home from a major heart attack.

The team have battled to repair his failing heart, but the only thing that will save him is a heart transplant and time is running out.

He and his partner of 25 years, Shabana, admit the wait is “terrifying”.

“Every minute feels like a lifetime,” says Shabana.

The Channel 5 series is an eye-opening look at the work of heart transplant teams in action (Image: Channel 5)

The Hospital: Life on the Line, starts on Channel 5 and My5 on Monday (June 3) at 9pm.