Hairy Biker Dave Myers' brave request before death as Si King 'tried not to lose it'

Before Hairy Bikers star Dave Myers passed away from cancer he made an emotional request to his best friend Si King, who is struggling to cope with the loss

Hairy Bikers Si King and Dave Myers were TV gold. The duo, with their full beards and large personalities, captured the hearts of the nation as they zoomed around the country on motorcycles, cooking up a storm. But while their chemistry made them both comedy and culinary stars, to each other, Si and Dave were simply best mates

That's why, since Dave's tragic passing from cancer aged 66 earlier this year, Si has admitted he is 'struggling' to cope and revealed at points he has wanted to "clear off and never come back". However, the brave chef, 57, is no doubt emboldened by the attitude of his much-loved pal, who he explains made a poignant request when he was diagnosed with the disease.

"Almost immediately, he said: 'I want to get back to work. I don’t want to just be someone with cancer. I’m still me'," explains Si, in an article for The Sunday Times. The pair first teamed up in 2002 and hosted more than 30 series and specials for the BBC, Channel 5 and Good Food until Dave passed in February 2024.

They filmed their final series together, The Hairy Bikers Go West, after Dave's diagnosis, and despite his condition, the TV star from Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, gave it his all.

"He wanted to travel up and down the west coast of the UK — an area he loved and where he’d been born. Oh God, that last series was by the far the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do in my entire life," says Si, from Kibblesworth, County Durham. "The crew felt it too; some of whom had been with us since the start. All of us trying to carry on as normal, trying not to lose it. But that paled into insignificance compared with what Dave must have been going through."

"When he called and told me about the cancer diagnosis in May 2022, it was a real body blow. I was struggling to know what to say, but then it dawned on me: I had to take my lead from Dave," Si added. "He didn’t want people feeling sorry for him. He wanted to roll up his sleeves and get stuck in. It was all about the fight.

"He was a naturally optimistic character and always looking for the positives. You can’t lose hope, can you? If you lose that, what have you got left? We even had a laugh about it. A touch of black humour — in a suitably mild and appropriate fashion."

Although Si has said he sometimes wants to get on his bike and "head into the sunset" he knows that is not what his best mate of 30 years would have wanted. “The answer is I am going to take some time to reflect on the life I had with my best mate, and think about moving forwards," he says. "Which is exactly what Dave would have wanted. Move forward, don’t dwell on the past.”