Zak Starkey, the son of Ringo Starr, had to cancel a show at London’s Karma Sanctum Soho Tuesday after he was diagnosed with a blood clot in his right leg.
Starkey, 59, had been set to take the stage with his music group Mantra of the Cosmos when he received the alarming health alert, The Independent reported, leading him to withdraw from Tuesday’s outing hours ahead of showtime.
Starkey was sidelined to rest for two weeks by his doctors, according to the outlet, and prescribed blood thinners for the hazardous health condition.
Starkey’s bandmates – Happy Mondays vocalist Shaun Ryder, 62, Oasis guitarist Andy Bell, 54, and percussionist Mark ‘Bez’ Berry, 60 – remained at the venue on Tuesday.
In lieu of a live show, patrons watched film of a performance from the group Sunday filmed in the hallowed Beatles ground of Liverpool at the Cavern Club.
The Beatles had played their first show at the venue, according to the outlet.
Zak Starkey, the 59-year-old son of Ringo Starr, had to cancel a show in London Tuesday after he was diagnosed with a blood clot in his right leg. Pictured in London in 2021
Ringo Starr, 84, pictured in a portrait in West Hollywood, California on October 17, 2024
In addition to the musical milestone, the Cavern Club is also where Starr first crossed paths with Starkey’s mother Maureen Tigrett, who the Beatle was wed to from 1965-1975.
‘First of all, can I say how special it was to play the Cavern with Zak Starkey,’ Berry said, according to the outlet. ‘He’s never been to the Cavern before and it felt special … it was better than anything I ever imagined in my life.’
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Berry added, ‘I couldn’t believe how good it was … to play there … I had to show off right at the end.
‘His f***ing dad’s Ringo Starr! Know what I mean? We felt like the Beatles – well, I did for a little moment.’
Starkey told the BBC Monday prior to his health crisis that he felt as if he had been ‘picked up and carried by the music’ while performing at the Cavern Club.
Starkey said, ‘We set up two kits and we double drummed the Beatles show. I’ve never been nervous in my life – I’ve been on stage since I was 12 years old – but it’s holy music. I know it, but I don’t know the drum bit.’
According to the United Kingdom’s National Health Service, ‘Blood clots can be very serious and need to be treated’ immediately, as they ‘can be life threatening if not treated quickly.’
The NHS said that common symptoms of a blood clot consist of ‘throbbing or cramping pain, swelling, redness and warmth in a leg or arm.’
Starkey was pictured performing in June 2023 at the Visarno Arena in Florence, Italy at the Firenze Rocks Festival
Starkey and Ringo Starr posed at an event in London on September 5, 2016
Other symptoms, according to the NHS, include ‘sudden breathlessness, sharp chest pain (may be worse when you breathe in) and a cough or coughing up blood.’
The U.K.’s healthcare system said that ‘staying healthy and active can help prevent them.’
Common measures practiced by high-risk patients include ‘wearing stockings that improve your blood flow or taking medicine to reduce the risk of clots (anticoagulants),’ the NHS said.
To avoid blood clots, people are advised to stay active and walk regularly; stay hydrated by drinking water; keeping one’s weight down; and wearing compression socks on flights.
Common factors in people who have blood clots include cigarette smoking; alcohol consumption; and staying sedentary for extended stretches, said the NHS.
