Allan Finnegan says his life has got “more difficult” over the last few months
Allan Finnegan at his home (Image: Liverpool Echo)
A dad who defied the predictions of doctors now thinks his time is running out. Allan Finnegan, 58, from Bootle, shot to fame in 2020 when he reached the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent, entertaining millions with his comedy routines.
At that time, he was juggling stand-up comedy with being a minister at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Bootle. However, two years later, Allan kept seeing “flashes of light” in his left eye.
Allan, who is married to Joyce and has two daughters, Beccy and Rachael, had been having eye check-ups every year due to his diabetes.
Allan was referred to St Paul’s Eye Hospital where a tumour was found in both his right and left eyes. While the tumour in his right eye was not thought to be serious and continues to be monitored, he needed treatment for the tumour in his left eye. Allan was diagnosed with ocular melanoma, an extremely rare form of cancer that affects the eye.
Allan told the ECHO: “Just before the check-up, the vision in my left eye started going slightly darker and I started seeing flashes. I mentioned it but they originally found something in my right eye. I kept saying there’s something in my left eye.”
This cancer was removed, but doctors warned that it could return and it did. The cancer spread to his liver and Allan was told it was incurable in December 2023.
Allan was told he had 12 months to live in December 2023(Image: Liverpool Echo)
After his diagnosis that December, doctors told him he had 12 months left to live. But he is still alive two years on, in part thanks to a fundraiser that helped get him further treatment.
The last few months has seen a downturn in Allan’s condition however, with no further treatments available to him after his current trial of new medication finishes.
Allan says the “countdown” is on as he prepares for the inevitable. He said: “The fundraising was for treatment that wasn’t available on the NHS.
“That definitely gave me an extra year because at the end of that, I was in a slightly better place than I was before I started it.
“Then I was put on the new treatments available on the NHS. I thought that’d do a bit better, but it just didn’t work for me, so I’m on that countdown clock of a year now, I think.
“It was expensive. Even if I could raise the money, that’s not really an option any more, so that’s why I’ve outlived it.
“Until the last few months, I would say it’s not been too bad health wise. You have your bad times obviously, but in general, the good times outweighed it until the last couple of months.
“I’m starting to feel it a lot more now. I’ve become weaker. I can’t do stuff anymore. I get totally out of breath, so going out is a chore. I mostly only go out now when I’m going to the hospital. I mostly spend a lot of the time in the house. Life is getting more difficult.”
These developments mean Allan’s mindset has shifted, from the energy of fundraising in the first few months to his physical weakness now.
Allan said: “At the beginning, you’re quite busy thinking about trying to raise money. I didn’t feel that sick. But now I’m feeling it, knowing that options are running out.
“Knowing other people’s stories – because I’m in groups on Facebook with people who’ve got the same thing – you can see the finish line, shall we say. It seems a lot closer than it did even three or four months ago.”
Allan is still keen to keep his story out there though. An autobiography about his life, called ‘I didn’t ask for any of this: Church, Comedy and Cancer’, will be released at the end of January.
Allan says writing a book was a long-term ambition of his but doing it over the past year has helped him pass the time. Inspired by conversations he had on the comedy scene, he wants it to be a humorous look at how your faith can evolve throughout your life.
A book about Allan’s life will be released in January(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Allan came to faith when he was 16, drawn in by the community of the church, and saw things in a “very black and white way”. But as he became older, he listened more to voices outside of his faith. He only became a minister when his church was struggling and needed someone to step up.
Allan said: “It is meant to be humorous and it’s only at the end where people will get a bit sad. But it’s also meant to be a journey. Your faith can evolve rather than dissolve.
“I actually found lots of people when I was on the comedy scene that said, ‘I used to go too but this happened’ or ‘I had a fall out’ or ‘my parents used to make me go and drag me along’.
“I couldn’t ignore it anymore. I thought, you’ve still got faith, you just don’t go to church. That made me reflect and (think about) what it was about my faith that was maybe putting people off. It’s for people who went to church, or still go to church, and are suffering with the same sorts of questions that I had in my head.”
Due to his illness, Allan has had to take a step back from his work as a minister and a comedian.
The dad-of-two is now focussing on the things he will miss out on. He said: “Knowing you won’t see your grandkids go to school and things like that is hard to take.
“It’s about the major milestones. A couple of weeks ago, I didn’t think I’d make Christmas because I was feeling that bad. The book launch is at the end of January. My birthday’s in February. Hopefully this trial gives me that little bit of extra time.”
“I didn’t ask for any of this!: Church, Comedy and Cancer” is published by Broad Place Publishing and will be released January 30 2026. You can find out more here.