Man attacked with metal baseball bat on way home from nightclub still struggles to cut his food

'It’s still difficult now because I look fit and well, but when I go out for food with my mates they have to cut my food for me, it’s tough,' Adam Harcombe told a BBC documentary team

Adam Harcombe is a seemingly fit and healthy 29-year-old, but under the surface he is continuing to recover from a brutal attack that left him unable to see or even cut up his own food.

His life was turned on its head three years ago, when he went out for a drink with friends at a nightclub in Porth, Wales, in September 2020. As he walked a friend home in the early hours, a car pulled up and two strangers - Callum Meirion Thomas and Nathan Emery - launched an unprovoked joint assault. Thomas repeatedly hit Adam with a metal baseball bat he had stashed in his car boot and then the pair fled the scene.

The attack left Adam with a devastating brain injury, loss of vision, and a 16-week hospital stay. Thomas received a 13-year prison sentence and Emery was jailed for three years by a judge who labelled it a "merciless attack" and a case of "stupid bravado against a young man who could not have foreseen such violence".

On Tuesday, August 27, a documentary series provided a rare look into the daily lives of the dedicated healthcare professionals at south Wales hospitals. The BBC Two series, Saving Lives in Cardiff, offers a gripping insight into the challenges, victories, and unwavering dedication of the medical teams as they work relentlessly to save lives, reports Wales Online.

On Tuesday's show, Adam shared the harrowing details of his injuries that continue to affect his life, including functional issues on the left side of his body and blindness in his left eye.

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During the programme, he recounted the brutal attack, saying: "They gave me a hammering. Once I was knocked out one was hitting me with a metal baseball bat on the floor unconscious. I woke up in hospital and all I wanted to do was get out of the bed and walk. The physio said: 'Look Ad, it's going to be a bit of time'. My left leg, arm, face, hand, everything on the left side of my body had just shut down.

"It's still difficult now because I look fit and well, but when I go out for food with my mates they have to cut my food for me, it's tough."

The episode also documented Adam's quest to regain his sight. No longer able to work as an electrician due to his vision impairment, Adam has found purpose volunteering as a 'patient befriender' on the same neurosurgery ward where he was once a patient.

"I sit with the guys who are a bit lonely and want a chat. I love it, coming in every Wednesday. It makes me feel better and it makes these guys feel better," he shared.

Adam has undergone approximately 10 surgeries since the assault, with several aimed at restoring his sight. He detailed how his vision suffered because he had contact lenses in during the attack, which led to severe infections in both eyes. While his right eye recovered, his left eye "was a write off".

"At the moment, it's like looking through frosted glass," Adam remarked. He continued: "I've had days where I've lost stuff [and] it's right in front of me. I feel useless and it's held my life up."

Adam has been waiting for a cataract removal operation for the last two years, after his condition was detected during an earlier surgery.

Ophthalmological expert Magdalena Popiela noted that Adam's waiting time is not unusual due to the high demand for such treatments. Throughout this period, Adam's left eye vision remained obstructed. In a recent episode, Ms Popiela carried out the much-needed and transformative surgery on Adam. The show captured the emotional moment when he took off his eye patch post-surgery.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Adam experienced a few seconds of blurriness before exclaiming: "I can see. It's been so long but it's finally here. I can see again...It feels like Christmas morning."