Busted star James Bourne has said that his life has been “saved” after his younger brother donated a kidney to him.
The musician, 43, announced last year that he was pulling out of Busted’s UK and Ireland tour after struggling with health problems and needed “major surgery to extend” his life.
Bourne has now shared that his younger brother Chris recently came to his rescue by giving him a kidney after doctors had given him a prognosis of just a few years left to live.
Writing on social media on Monday (26 October), Bourne said: “Wow, what the hell happened? One minute you’re heading out on tour, the next thing you know you’re on the bench and out of the game.
Health update. ❤️🩹 I’m still alive and kicking and it’s all thanks to my brother. You can read about it in my Spotify bio.
— James Bourne (@JamesBourne) October 26, 2026
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“My condition was serious and the doctors told me I had a few years left to live. I’m happy share now that my youngest brother, Chris, who stepped in for me on tour last year, has saved my life yet again. This time quite literally by donating me one of his kidneys.”
Bourne added that he “can’t believe how much better” he’s already feeling and that both he and his brother are recovering from surgery “just fine”.
“My brother is a hero,” he added, with Chris responding: “We did it brother.”
The musician is yet to reveal the specific condition that he required a kidney transplant for.
Bourne is one of the founding members of British pop band Busted, having formed it with Matt Willis in 2000. They held auditions for a third member, after which singer Charlie Simpson joined.
The band stormed the British music charts with songs like “Crashed the Wedding” and “You Said No” before splitting in 2004 but reunited in 2013 to join forces with McFly as part of a McBusted tour.
Last year, both Busted and McFly took part in a tour of UK and Ireland, however after Bourne fell ill, his brother Chris filled in for him on guitar.
Bourne told his fans at the time: “I’m really sorry to say that over the last 8 days it has become clear that I am not in good enough health to play these shows.
“There’s a lot of information I still don’t have about my condition but my bandmates, management and I are unanimous in deciding that I should focus on the medical stuff for now,” he added.
In September this year, he shared an update, saying that he was still waiting for surgery but “should know more information soon”. He also tweeted to say that as soon as he’s well enough, he would be “going straight back to Busted”.
That same month, he made his first public appearance in months – posing for a photo with Hilary Duff’s husband Matthew Koma as the Lizzie McGuire star performed a string of gigs in London.
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