Friday’s edition of PFT Live included a moment that was unprecedented in the 15-year history of the show.
Co-host Michael Holley fainted on live TV.
Others have written about the incident; it makes sense for us to address it here. Michael, who has been part of the show for the past two years, became overheated during the two-hour program. He hadn’t had anything to eat or drink before the show began at 7:00 a.m. ET on Peacock, NBCSN, and SiriusXM 85. And, as he later told me, his studio is very warm.
It happened in the final 30 minutes of the program. Earlier in the show, Michael’s audio in his earpiece had cut out, and I noticed him bending over to try to get it working again.
As he became ill, I was looking at the camera, which sits above the monitor that returns the live feed of the show. I noticed Michael moving. I thought that he had again lost his audio. When he slumped to the right and fell out of the view of the screen, I knew something was wrong.
We went straight to a commercial break and immediately commenced an effort to contact Michael’s wife. Within a minute or so (which seemed a lot longer than that), Michael was moving. He later confirmed that he was fine.
Except for the five stitches he needed in his knee, which he cut when he fell.
Many who witnessed the incident as it happened expressed concern for Michael, and we appreciate that.
Some posted the clip on social media; we exercised our prerogative to have the video removed. We also decided not to re-air the show on Peacock or NBCSN. It was not televised in its usual spot on Sky Sports.
Several clips from Friday’s show were posted on YouTube.
The lesson learned was a simple one — the control room needs to have phone numbers for family members who can be immediately contacted if a co-host who is contributing from home has a sudden health issue. Two years ago, I thought I might be having a heart attack during a live episode; at the time, I didn’t consider that it would make sense for the folks running the show to have my wife’s number at their fingertips. Moving forward, we’ll have emergency contact information for all co-hosts who appear from home instantly available.
The best news by far is that Michael is fine, but for the five stitches. It was a scary moment, one of the realities of two hours of live TV. Again, we appreciate the concern expressed by those who saw it happen. Michael will be back for his next scheduled appearance.
