CJ de Mooi has accused his ex-Eggheads colleagues of ‘needing backbone transplants’ after they failed to reach out to him when he revealed he was dying of AIDS.
The 49-year-old TV quizzer, whose real name is Joseph Connagh, gave an insight into his 30-year battle with HIV which he contracted when he was 18 after being forced into prostitution while homeless.
While he has said that the reaction to his disclosure has been ‘overwhelmingly positive’, he hit out at his BBC ex-colleagues who he claimed have failed to reach out to offer support.
CJ de Mooi has accused his ex-Eggheads colleagues of ‘needing backbone transplants’ after they failed to reach out to him when he revealed he was dying of AIDS. The 49-year-old TV quizzer, whose real name is Joseph Connagh, gave an insight into his 30-year battle with HIV which he contracted when he was 18 after being forced into prostitution while homeless
‘The response I’ve had since speaking about my diagnosis from the BBC and my fellow Eggheads has been exactly the same as it has been for the past three years ever since I was fired from the programme,’ he told the Mirror.
‘The support and everything they’ve said has been completely constant in the fact that it’s been absolute deafening silence.
‘I haven’t heard a word from the BBC, none of my fellow colleagues on the show have had any contact with me.’
CJ claimed that the Eggheads were told by the BBC never to contact him again after he was fired.
He added: ‘They’re clearly all waiting for their backbone transplants.’
30-year battle: Ex Eggheads star CJ de Mooi, 49, bravely told Eamonn Holmes on talkRADIO on Tuesday that he contracted HIV while being forced to work as a teen prostitute in a bid to ‘stay alive’ while homeless – he recently revealed he is ‘dying from AIDS’
Speaking out: The TV star previously thanked fans for their support, adding: ‘I hope I can return the love and positivity you’ve shown me’
His revelation comes after he was forced into bankruptcy thanks to a legal battle to keep the home he shares with his husband, Andrew Doran.
CJ opened up to Eamonn Holmes on talkRadio on Tuesday where he revealed he contracted HIV when he was forced into sex work on the streets ‘in a bid to stay alive’.
The former Egghead faced spiralling legal fees while fighting extradition to the Netherlands over claims he murdered a homeless man in Amsterdam in 1988, for which he was never charged in Britain.
The claims came from an excerpt in his autobiography in which he said he thought he had killed somebody.
However, in a candid video uploaded to YouTube, CJ said: ‘That was a complete lie.
‘No one took five minutes to ask me about it.’
CJ (third left) has declared bankruptcy to try and recoup costs relating to the false allegation of sexual assault that was made against him in 2016. Pictured L to R: Chris Hughes, Daphne Fowler, CJ de Mooi, Barry Simmons, Kevin Ashman, Judith Keppel
He declared bankruptcy in September 2018 and his spokesperson said this was due to opposing solicitors trying to recoup costs relating to the false allegation of sexual assault made against him in 2016.
In the video he said: ‘A year and a half ago I named the person who accused me, which I was allowed to do’.
That person then demanded £10,000 in damages and hundreds of thousands of pounds in costs – which CJ says he can’t afford.
He continued to say: ‘I have had no money and no income for the last three years.
‘I’ve been surviving purely on a disability living allowance.’
CJ said that he believes Freeths solicitors in Birmingham will succeed in their attempts to repossess his home.
He said: ‘This will make me homeless for the second time in my life’.
A GoFundMe page set up to raise £15,000 for CJ’s legal fees claims that any money that isn’t used will be sent back to donors.
So far the page has raised £5,442.
CJ lives with his husband of three years, and partner of 18 years, Andrew Doran in Caldicot, Monmouthshire but continues to worry about losing their home.
CJ became a panellist on Eggheads, which features five quiz champions competing as a team against different challengers, in 2003.
Originally from Rotherham, he has revealed how he ran away from home at the age of 17 following an abusive childhood and became homeless.