Tracey-Ann Osbourne revealed the truth behind James Nesbitt’s hair transplant in the middle of an episode of The Wheel, prompting a shocked contestant to ask ‘is that common knowledge?’.

In a sneak peak at this weekend’s episode, contestant Martin said he would spend any prize money he won on a hair transplant.

In turn, host Michael McIntyre asked the celebrities around the wheel if they knew anything about the cosmetic procedure.

Capital Breakfast radio host Jordan North said that his brother went to Turkey for one, which prompted Tracey-Ann to blurt out: ‘Jimmy Nesbitt went to Ireland! It’s nearer.’

Concerned that she had just dropped a bombshell, Martin asked: ‘Is this common knowledge?’, to which Tracey-Ann insisted: ‘Yeah’.

The audience erupted into laughter as she added: ‘Do you know why? Because he got it for free, so he’s happy to let everybody know.’

And she wasn’t lying, as James has an entire patient testimonial page on the website of the hair transplant clinic that kitted him out with a new, much thicker, hairline.

In fact, the Bloodlands star has undergone three hair transplants at Hair Restoration Blackrock (HRBR) in Dublin, Ireland, with the first in 2007 and the others within the four years after.

Tracey-Ann Osbourne revealed the truth behind James Nesbitt ‘s hair transplant in the middle of an episode of The Wheel

Contestant Martin said he would spend the prize money on a hair transplant if he won the game

James Nesbitt pictured in 2005 before his hair transplants and in 2024 after his transformation

In his testimonial, James wrote: ‘I remember it so vividly still, just how badly hair loss affected me, not only professionally, but also personally.’

He goes on to explain that he had a thick head of curly hair in his 20s before he noticed he was losing it when he would wake up to find ‘more and more hairs as time pᴀssed’ on his pillows.

It became ‘something of an obsession’ for him as he confessed he couldn’t walk past a shop window or look in a mirror ‘without constantly examining’ the progression of his hair loss.  

He said his ‘confidence was at an all time low’ and he would constantly ask his friends and family if they could notice his regressing hairline.

But James explains that his ‘happiness returned to him’ after the transformation was complete and spoke of the ‘positive impact’ it had on his life, both mentally and physically.

The Wheel airs on BBC One and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.