SKY SPORTS DARTS anchor Dave Clark has opened up about his brave six-year battle with Parkinson’s disease, describing the moment he knew he couldn’t keep it a secret any longer.

Clark recalls the exact time and day — 10.47am on 25 January 2011 — his world was turned upside down but says he made the decision to not let the diagnosis take over his life.

“You’ve got two choices,” he told Newstalk’s Off the Ball last night. “I’ve decided to do everything my Dad didn’t do. He hid himself away and didn’t tell anyone about his diagnosis. Basically got depressed and took his own life in the end and that’s a really sad way to go.

“I’m up front about it but I kept it a secret for two and half years. I was doing a World Championship Boxing fight in Glasgow, and I was hiding in a cupboard trying to put my cuff links on, and the countdown was going before I had to be on air.

“I was struggling with the buttons, the cuff links, the tie, and I thought this is ridiculous. I hadn’t told any of my colleagues, and I decided that this was totally mad. So I decided to go public.”

You can listen to the full interview here.

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