NEWSJames Norton Nearly Fainted During Nicole Kidman's 2024 Awards Speech as Medical Emergency Caused 'Pandemonium' at A-List Event
James Norton was quickly rushed a 'steaming plate of potatoes' after his blood sugar dropped during an A-list event.
July 22 2026, Updated 7:16 p.m. ET
Actor James Norton's night at an A-list event took an unexpected turn after he revealed that he nearly fainted during Nicole Kidman's speech.
The House of the Dragon star, 41, opened up about the "pandemonium" his type 1 diabetes caused while attending the 2024 GQ Man of the Year Awards during an appearance on the "Table Manners" podcast on Wednesday, July 22.
James Norton Experienced Medical Emergency During Nicole Kidman's Speech
James Norton nearly fainted during Nicole Kidman's speech at the GQ Man of the Year Awards in 2024.
"I put my insulin in thinking we were going to have some bread with the starter," he recounted. "The starter arrived, and it was this little bit of trout, smoked trout, with no carbs. I was on the high table and they were honoring Jude Law and Nicole Kidman and all these people. There were speeches after the starter.”
Taking insulin while eating no carbohydrates can cause the blood sugar to drop to dangerous levels, leading to fainting or seizures, per The Cleveland Clinic.
Since he had already administered the insulin, Norton explained that he had only "10 minutes" before he would have fainted.
James Norton Felt Himself Getting 'Wobbly'
James Norton was quickly given a chocolate bar and juice after revealing his type 1 diabetes to staff.
"I couldn’t interrupt the speeches because I was sitting at the high table," he described. "I eventually started sweating. You get really wobbly. You eventually will faint."
He eventually was able to inform staff that he was "a diabetic" and needed sustenance "quickly," though things escalated after he was given "a chocolate bar and some juice."
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'Pandemonium' Broke Out Backstage
James Norton didn't realize that he caused behind-the-scenes panic with the medical emergency.
"What I didn’t realize was that pandemonium had broken out backstage. They were like, 'James Norton’s about to have a hypo,'" he recounted. "In the middle of Nicole Kidman’s speech, someone randomly brings me a steaming plate of potatoes."
Hypo or hypoglycemia occurs when a diabetic's blood sugar takes a major drop, per the CDC.
Norton admitted that without knowing about the medical emergency, observers may have assumed he thought the event was "b-------.'
James Norton Believes Doctors Are 'Close' to a 'Cure'
James Norton shared his hope that, in the coming years, people with diabetes would no longer have to administer their own insulin.
Norton was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when he was 22 years old. Elsewhere in the podcast interview, the U.K. native praised the scientific advancements that have helped improve the management and treatment of the disease.
"There is incredible advances, because a lot of people in America, there’s a lot of money and and resources being pushed into it, and I think we’re getting closer,” Norton said. “My hope is within like 10-15 years we all won’t be administering insulin."
He continued, “There’s so many different versions of a cure, but I think we’re close. I mean, obviously, we’re closer than we’ve ever been but actually, suddenly, within the diabetic community people like are like, ‘Well, maybe it actually is getting quite close.’”
