Broadcaster Jordan North has shared a plea with the owner of a dog he rescued last year and recalled his uncomfortable reaction to his act of bravery.
Capital FM Breakfast host Jordan became an unexpected hero and then a rescuee himself when he took the plunge into the River Thames to save a Labrador pup. The former Radio 1 DJ found himself in murky waters during his heroic mission in December, prompting an RNLI callout.
The I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! star spotted the dog in distress while out for a run last month and without hesitation dashed down the riverbank near Hammersmith Bridge. But despite his valiant efforts, Jordan soon needed rescuing too. Thankfully, the RNLI crew was training nearby and reached them swiftly.
Safely back on dry land during Capital Breakfast, a grateful Jordan extended his thanks: “A big thank you and a massive shout out to RNLI Chiswick who came and rescued me because I was getting a bit panicky.” Now, one month on, Jordan has revealed more details about the gallant act.
Speaking on the Help! I Sexted My Boss podcast, Jordan discussed the rescue for the first time with his co-host William Hanson, dismissing his heroic act as “old news” as his friend brought up the topic and recalling how “it got blown out of proportion”. He explained how he was on a run at around 6pm when he spotted the dog owner in distress.
He told the story of how he spotted dog “struggling” in the water, recalling: “So I climbed over, ran down to the jetty and I’m going, hey, boy, hey, boy. And honestly, it was horrific. This dog was like whimpering and crying. And he just, every time he comes to me and I tried to grab him, the tide kept taking him and Labradors are strong swimmers. So I went on to this like, not Beyonce, what are they called, Beyonce? A buoyancy.”
“And so I’m balancing on it and I managed to get the dog, I pull him up, then he falls back in because of the tide and where I am. So I get the dog and I like straddle on this pole, right, and I’ve got the dog on me, the dog’s whimpering and I’m fine. And then I was like stuck because there’s no way, I balanced across and nearly fell in. And then there was like the crowd and I just shout out, I went, can somebody call the Coast Guard, please?”
After being rescued the by Coast Guard, Jordan then revealed how the owner of the rescued dog turned out to be a big fan of his podcast. He recalled how the dog owner told him: “I’m a big G&Diva [the nickname for listeners of Help! I Sexted My Boss], I listen every week.”
Jordan added how he has forgotten the woman’s name but would like to track her down and see the dog again, without any publicity. “And there won’t be any cameras, I won’t want cameras or put anything on social,” Jordan said as he revealed his wish for a reunion with the pooch he saved.
He added: “I’d love to find the owner and dog, just see how dog is, because I can’t stop thinking about that poor dog. Because at the time, you like adrenaline and stuff. But I would like to find the dog just to give him a hug and some treats, because I just want to see him.”
William, Jordan’s co-host, then joked: “Well, I am sure you will probably be reunited at the Pride of Britain Awards, when you inevitably win the Soggy Doggy Award.” Jordan concluded by declaring one final time: “It was blown out of proportion, it was. It was massively blown out of proportion.”
While Jordan was hailed as a hero by many for his daring rescue, some did criticise the radio presenter, labelling him ‘selfish’ and accusing him of wasting RNLI resources. However, Jordan hit back at the negative comments on his breakfast show last week, explaining: “A lot of people have made out like I went into the river which I would never have done and basically I just kind of climbed over a fence, a wall. To go to a jetty and get the dog out and then I got stuck on a beam and the RNLI had to come and rescue me and the dog. The RNLI have a video of it.”
Despite the backlash, the response has largely been overwhelmingly supportive, with Jordan now being recognised in public places such as the street and even his local gym. He shared on his radio show: “Loads of press and people and Sky and LBC asking for an interview and I went to the gym yesterday and people were coming up to me, no one ever comes up to me at the gym. Jeremy the taxi driver this morning was like ‘this is on me’, I was like ‘no I’ll pay’.”
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