Terry Hall diagnosed with pancreatic cancer months before he died, says The Specials bassist Horace Panter

Musician explained how the band had been ready to record a new album in September, when Hall became unwell

The Specials frontman Terry Hall was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just a few months before he died, according to bandmate Horace Panter.

Hall died on Sunday (18 December) after a short battle with the disease, aged 63.

On Tuesday (20 December) bassist Horace Panter wrote a lengthy statement on Facebook detailing his version of events.

Panter recalled how the band had been ready to fly out to the US back in September to record a new album, when Hall had emailed to say he was unwell with a stomach bug.

“We had it all planned out,” began the bass player, explaining that Hall already had the “framework for 8 tunes” and that “confidence was high”.

“This was in September. Terry e-mails everyone and says he’s in bed with a stomach bug and can’t do the first week of pre-production sessions. No big deal, we can knock everything back a week. We’re not due to fly out until 4 November,” Panter wrote.

But in the next week, Hall’s condition had worsened and he was admitted to hospital.

“Sunday 2 October and I get a phone call from Manager Steve. And everything turns to s***,” Panter continued.

“Terry’s illness is a lot worse than we thought. He has been diagnosed with cancer of the pancreas which has spread to his liver. This is serious. Like life-threatening serious.

“He has developed diabetes due to his pancreas being attacked. This has to be treated first, then it’s a regime of chemotherapy. There is nothing anyone can do. Everything is put on hold,” he added.

Panter went on to say how Hall’s treatment had “started favourably” with the band scheduling work to restart in March 2023.

On 17 December, Panter had been advised to say his goodbyes to his long term bandmate and friend over the phone (Getty Images)

However, as the weeks went on things “went quiet” and in December they found out that Hall was deteriorating.

On 17 December, Panter had been advised to say his goodbyes to his long term bandmate and friend over the phone. “It was tough,” he said.

“Terry died around half past 5 the next evening, Sunday 18 December,” wrote Panter.

The bassist explained that after his diagnosis, Hall was “emphatic” about keeping his illness private.

Since the news of Hall’s death broke, fellow artists, celebrities and members of the public have been paying their respects to the singer.

On Tuesday (20 December), Blur frontman Damon Albarn posted a touching piano cover of the band’s classic song “Friday Night, Saturday Morning”.

Other artists including Frank Turner, UB40, Elvis Costello and Boy George have also paid their respects to the legendary singer.