Richard Hammond reveals how wife brought him out of coma as he says divorce is like crash

Richard Hammondhinted that his wife Amanda 'Mindy' Hammond played a crucial role in his recovery from a coma. The 55-year old-presenter revealed that he and columnist Mindy, 59, decided to part ways after nearly three decades of marriage earlier this year.

In a joint statement released by him, they announced their marriage was "coming to end". Their relationship had been in the spotlight over the years, particularly following his car crash while filming Top Gear in 2006.

Richard suffered a brain injury and was in a coma in intensive care for several weeks. Now, he has addressed their split for the first timeas he compared the divorce to his crash.

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He said: "Whatever happens to us, we can decide. Maybe not in the moment. I didn’t decide, as the car was going over at 320mph 'I’m going to make this a good thing', but there came a moment when I thought, 'right, my reaction to this is going to be positive."

Speaking to the Daily Mail, he went on: "That’s what you have to do. Well, it’s what I do." Richard previously suggested that Mindy's "screaming" at his bedside may have helped rouse him from the coma.

He reflected on this experience in a YouTube video uploaded in 2022, where he shared what he dreamt about while in the coma. The TV star revealed that he had a "dream" that was "really vivid" as "a lot of morphine" coursed through his system towards the end of his time in the coma.

He described it as a walk 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 recording the footage at the location from his vision, went on to explain that he had walked up a hillside in the countryside towards a tree.

He revealed that as he approached the tree, he sensed that he "really" was in "trouble". Richard added that the sensation kept intensifying, before explaining: "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 continued by revealing that he told Mindy about the 'dream' once he had emerged from the coma and she then shared "her side of the story". Richard explained: "At the same time I was having that dream, she'd been called into intensive care."

Mindy was informed: "It's not looking good. We think we're gonna lose him." Richard explained that Mindy asked if there was anything she could do but was informed "not really" but then wanted to know if she could "really shout" at him.

"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."

Richard announced their separation in a joint statement that 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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