- Jody Bunting, 45, said he is accused of intentionally causing an allergic reaction
A TV fitness guru who found fame on Channel 4’s Big Breakfast said he has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a colleague suffered an allergic reaction to chocolate.
Jody Bunting, 45, claimed he is being accused of intentionally giving the staff member the sweet treat during an incident that took place at the Mickleover Court Hotel Leisure Club in Derby – an accusation he strongly denies.
The former 31-stone Channel 4 Big Breakfast star was ‘paraded’ around Luton Airport in handcuffs after being arrested as he returned from a holiday abroad, he said.
He was in Morocco on holiday the day the incident happened – which saw the member of staff rushed to the intensive care unit at the Royal Derby Hospital.
Mr Bunting, from Hatton, has worked as a group exercise instructor at the leisure club since 2017.
Speaking to MailOnline, he said: ‘It’s a surreal experience the fact that over a piece of chocolate someone could be arrested for attempted murder. It’s like a dream – it hasn’t quite sunk in what’s actually happening.
‘It’s the anticipation of the fact that attempted murder is life.’
Jody Bunting, 45, claimed he has been arrested on suspicion of attempted after a colleague suffered an allergic reaction to chocolate
Mr Bunting is a former 31-stone Channel 4 Big Breakfast star
Mr Bunting is seen on the Big Breakfast before the ordeal happened
He added: ‘I just can’t believe that that police have taken such a small matter so seriously.
‘My mum was really upset about it, and I still don’t think she really understands the seriousness of what could happen.’
Mr Bunting said he has gone on holiday to Gran Canaria in a bid to ‘be done with the whole situation’ and is set to return on January 12.
Talking about the moment he was arrested, Mr Bunting told Derbyshire Live: ‘I was in shock, being arrested in front of a friend and then being paraded around Luton Airport in cuffs, however, the members at the gym had warned me it may happen.
‘I was shocked my local South Derbyshire police officers had come all the way down to London for this issue. The custody sergeant did ask if I could still do my high kicks as he’d Googled me and realised who I was.’
Mr Bunting was bailed following his arrest, with conditions including not contacting specific staff members at Mickleover Court, as well as a condition prohibiting him from visiting the leisure club.
Mr Bunting added: ‘I am doing OK. I am working a lot less now as Mickleover Court was my main job, so I’m just focusing on the fitness classes I still have and the online weight loss coaching I do.
‘It’s motivated me not to work for anyone else again, to focus on my own business. I am just focusing on the future and hoping I get the ‘no further action’ letter from the police any day now. The hardest thing is what to tell the members who have contacted me.
The TV guru said he was ‘paraded’ around Luton Airport in handcuffs after being arrested as he returned from a holiday abroad
The incident is said to have happened at Mickleover Court Hotel Leisure Club in Derby
‘It’s hard to just say ”I got arrested for attempted murder” and not explain the whys. When I tell people it’s over a piece of chocolate, they actually laugh out loud, which is even more amusing because of my slimming work and past.’
Mr Bunting says he has not heard from Derbyshire police about any significant developments since his arrest on November 2, 2023. The incident is said to have taken place on October 29.
Mr Bunting was the 31-stone host of Lose it with Jody on Channel 4’s former morning show The Big Breakfast between 2001 and 2002.
The TV personality stopped working at a call centreIn 2001 to teach fitness full-time.
MailOnline has contacted Derbyshire Police for comment.
