Sir Roger Moore advises fans to learn to check own pulse

Veteran actor Sir Roger Moore has advised his fans to learn to check their own pulse, as it can be helpful in discerning irregular heartbeat.

The 82-year-old actor collapsed on stage a few years ago because of the medical condition known as arrhythmia.

"People should know their pulse as they would their weight. If I had been checking my pulse I would have realized my heartbeat was slow and sought help," the Daily Express quoted him as saying.

The former James Bond had fallen on stage in New York in 2003 during a performance of The Play What I Wrote.

Recollecting the event, he said: "I'd just finished a vigorous song and dance routine and I remember trying to say a line but nothing came out. Then I went down.

"I was playing Marie Antionette in a dress with a big wig, which probably helped limit the damage when I fell.

"My wife thought at first I was ad-libbing but when the curtain came down she knew something was terribly wrong and came racing backstage.

"I remember opening my eyes and seeing fellow actor Hamish McColl bending over me and thinking, 'What are you doing in my bedroom?' There was a roaring noise in my head but it cleared and I felt okay.

"I was lucky," he says. "My collapse was a warning. Others may not be so fortunate. Taking your pulse only takes 30 seconds."

Moore was suffering from bradycardia, an unusually slow heartbeat.