Who is Eggheads star CJ de Mooi, when was he diagnosed with Aids and why did the BBC axe him?
The professional quizzer has been battling the syndrome for 30 years
EGGHEADS star CJ de Mooi has revealed he is dying of Aids and desperate to avoid homelessness.
The 49-year-old star was axed from the BBC Two quiz show in 2016 as he faced false claims he'd sexually assaulted a man on a night out. Here's what we know about his life.
What was CJ's early life like?
CJ de Mooi was born Joseph Connagh on November 6, 1969, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
On a self-recorded YouTube video he claimed to have had a highly abusive childhood, causing him to run away from home shortly after his seventeenth birthday and become homeless both in Rotherham and Sheffield.
The video described how he travelled to London, jumped on a ferry to Amsterdam and later moved on to Cologne.
There he had a chance encounter outside a gay bar that led to the beginnings of his modelling career.
Is CJ living with Aids?
Yes - in April 2019 the former Eggheads star revealed he has been living with Aids for thirty years.
Taking to Twitter, CJ opened up about his battle, writing: "I’ve been living with Aids for 30 years but the agony of the last 3 years means I may not have many left.
"I’m outwardly healthy, still running and am staying positive I can get better.
"Thank you all for your love and if I can do anything to help any of you, please just ask. CJ."
The former quizzing star now runs the risk of losing his home in Monmouthshire because of his bankruptcy woes and a crowdfunding campaign has been set up to try and help him avoid ending up on the streets.
His friend "Joe", who runs the account according to , is encouraging fans to make donations.
He wrote: "CJ’s life is ruined, he is dying and about to lose his home...
"Thank you so much to everyone who donated, commented, retweeted or sent support.
"You are amazing as is the £3348.72 raised for CJ so far.
"If he somehow manages to save his house, it will all be repaid or go to charity. Joe."
On April 22, 2019, he revealed he was trying a "new course of treatment" in hospital.
Why was CJ axed by the BBC? And what are his financial and legal woes?
CJ was axed by the BBC after being arrested on suspicion of a murder allegedly committed in 1988.
The former BBC brainbox racked up a fortune in legal bills fighting extradition to the Netherlands over the alleged murder and accrued further legal fees when he was wrongly accused of a sexual assault.
As his legal fees spiralled out of control, he was declared bankrupt in September 2018.
A spokesman for the star told The Sun Online back in March: “He declared bankruptcy in 2018 due to opposing solicitors trying to recoup costs relating to the false allegation of sexual assault made against CJ in 2016.
“The firm put in a claim against his only asset, the home owned with his husband, and is trying to force sale.
"They are aware that CJ is very seriously ill so are apparently trying to force this through quickly.
“It is noted that the BBC suspended CJ on the very day he was questioned by police and fired him on the very day he was cleared of all suspicion.
“He has not worked since so has no savings and his only income is a disability benefit.
“It has been confirmed by a QC that at no point in the last 3 years since the case began has CJ broken the law or committed any offence whatsoever.”
What’s in a name?
He changed his name by deed poll to de Mooi at age 19 which he used for modelling.
According to him, "de Mooi" translates as "handsome" in Dutch, however in reality, it would be "the beautiful".
When did he become a quiz master and actor?
The professional quizzer appeared on a number of television quiz shows before finding fame on Eggheads in 2003, where he was one of the five original members of the show’s eponymous team.
In December 2011 he announced that he had left Eggheads permanently to pursue a career in acting.
He has appeared in a number of plays, musicals and pantomimes and will be seen in upcoming film The Renata Road.
He returned to a new, short-lived format of Eggheads in 2014 called Revenge of the Egghead before making a return to the main version of the show where he replaced Daphne Fowler.
LATEST TV
What else do we know?
A self-professed teetotal and vegetarian, he has run in the London Marathon raising money for charity on three occasions.
He currently lives in Caldicot, Monmouthshire with his husband of three years Andrew Doran.
He is also an author having written How to Win TV Quiz Shows and Unscripted: My Journey from Sleeping on the Streets to TV Stardom.