Irish president had a 'mild form of stroke'

Michael D Higgins says he experienced a mild stroke in February

Irish President Michael D Higgins has revealed that he had "a form of mild stroke" earlier this year.

In February, the 83-year-old spent several days in hospital after experiencing a "mild transient weakness", his office said at the time.

Mr Higgins described his illness as a "little episode" in an interview with The Irish Times.

“I’m fine now. What I had was a form of mild stroke. It didn’t affect my cognitive abilities. It affected simply my motor side, which was on the left-hand side," he said.

“My left hand is fully back but [the stroke] somehow exacerbated stuff that I had in my lower back. I’m getting that fixed in the next week.”

He also told the newspaper he had spoken on the telephone with King Charles during his hospital stay.

Mr Higgins became president in 2011 and was re-elected in November 2018.

He spoke to the newspaper in Manchester, his first interview since the stroke, ahead of receiving an honorary doctorate at his alma mater, the University of Manchester.

On Thursday, Mr Higgins is set to deliver a lecture at the university.