What we know as Max George shares surgery update after heart issue

Max George has revealed he will undergo surgery way quicker than doctors initially expected.

In some good news, he shared his hopes of being home for Christmas after all.

The 36-year-old singer has been diagnosed with a 2:1 atrioventricular block. According to the NHS, a heart block is where the heart beats slower or has an abnormal rhythm and often is a problem caused by the electrical pulses that control your heart beats.

He is best known as part of boyband The Wanted alongside Silva Kaneswaren, Nathan Sykes, Jay McGuiness and the late Tom Parker. It has been two years since bandmate Parker died aged 33 after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in March 2022. George and Kaneswaren had rebooted the group as The Wanted 2.0 but McGuiness and Sykes chose not to rejoin.

Max George to have surgery

This week George said he may need to have a pacemaker which is a small electrical device that is surgically fitted into the chest.

On Tuesday, he shared an update on Instagram: "Had a little day trip today. Full CT scan on my heart. Not something I’d choose to do again!"

He added: "As I mentioned yesterday, I have a 2:1 block in my heart. Unfortunately my heart rate hasn’t picked up at all in almost a week. Because of this, we don’t have too much time to wait so it looks like I’m going to be in surgery way quicker than the doctors first thought. I may even be home for Christmas!

"The last few nights have been really rough, but I wanted to say that I’m absolutely humbled by all your messages of support. Both people I know and those i don’t. It’s given me a much needed boost and my family have been overwhelmed with support, which means more to me than anything."

Earlier this week on Instagram, George told his followers: "I hope you are having a good night, spoke to the nurse earlier and good news is I get to have a scan earlier than I thought.

"So that’s really really good, and it’s called a 2:1 block, that’s what we know at the moment, going to try and find out the cause which will then determine how we treat it, whether a pacemaker, defibrillator, or something else."

Plus watching Manchester City lose against Manchester United on Sunday "didn't help much", George admitted.

Support from girlfriend Maisie Smith and family

While in hospital George has the support from his "wonderful" long-time partner Maisie Smith, who he met while taking part in Strictly in 2020. Smith shared three words in support on his Instagram too: "Love you Max."

His mum Barbara has also spoken out: "We are beside ourselves, but we are keeping our fingers crossed."

She added to MailOnline: "Max is in the hospital right now and he’s being very well taken care of. I took him to A&E this week where he was looked at. He is in the best place he can possibly be right now."

George first shared the news last week on Thursday and he said he felt "very lucky that this was caught when it was", although he described it as a "huge shock" and "no doubt a set back".

He went public with the news on his Instagram account with a following of 368,000 and The Wanted 2.0 Instagram account that has 15.2k followers.

At the time, he told his followers: "Hey everyone, yesterday I felt really unwell and was taken in to hospital. Unfortunately after some tests they’ve found that I have some issues with my heart."

Celebrity friends share support

In the wake of the news, George's Instagram account has been flooded with kind words and support from his celebrity friends and fans.

His The Wanted 2.0 bandmate Siva Kaneswaran led the unwavering support, saying: "Here for you brother. Rest up and get well soon."

JLS star Marvin Humes wrote: "Sorry to hear you're not well geezer..you're strong and will fight through.. Big love mate."

"God bless you bro, wishing you better soon. Sending lots of love," Strictly finalist and JLS boyband star JB Gill wrote.

Having taken part in Strictly back in 2020 alongside Dianne Buswell, many of the pros shared their support too. Katya Jones wrote: "Get well soon Max! Sending you all the positive energy x."

Nancy Xuxu wrote: "Get well soon Max. Sending you lots of love."

Karen Hauer added: "Get well soon lovely."

Love Island star Luca Bish also said: "Love ya bro."

Read more: Maisie Smith supports boyfriend Max George after worrying health update from hospital bed (Manchester Evening News, 2-min read)

What we don't know

Recovery time

It's not known how long The Wanted star will need to recover but he initially predicted he would "probably" get "a month in bed".

At first George said he faced a "difficult few weeks" and perhaps months as he rests. At the time, he thought he would have to spend Christmas in hospital, although now he hopes to be home for the festive day. He said: "It’s gonna be a difficult few weeks / months… and Christmas in a hospital bed wasn’t exactly what I had planned!"

Return to work

George is taking some time off to rest while he is in hospital, surrounded by his loved ones. It's not known when he will be able to return to work.

The beginning of 2025 was already shaping up to be an exciting one for the star. He has a The Wanted 2.0 headline show penned in at Manchester Cathedral for 27 February. In November, they spoke about how they planned to honour Parker's memory.

His bandmate Kaneswaren said on Lorraine: "We can't help but miss him, seeing the old videos and seeing his face just brings it all back. We wanted to launch The Wanted 2.0 in Manchester Cathedral in association with a charity just to have a nod to Tom and have him with us the whole way."

Also, in the pipeline, the star was cast alongside his girlfriend Smith to play a married couple in Jeff Wayne's musical version of The War Of The Worlds which tours in 2025.