TikTok sensation Spudman peels back the curtain on living with kidney failure
With 3.5 million followers on TikTok, Spudman – real name Ben Newman – has gained fans across the world, posting videos about life running his jacket potato trailer in Tamworth.
In 2020, Ben began using social media to connect with customers, but unexpectedly became a TikTok star in October 2023, racking up more than 100 million views. Ben has frequently appeared in the media since, including on the BBC, ITV and in an advert for Screwfix.
Besides potatoes, Spudman is best known for his engaging personality and trademark mohawk. However, regular viewers will also know that behind his celebrity status, Ben is a father of nine who has been living with kidney failure since 2010.
We spoke to Ben and his fiancée, Sarah (aka Spudwife) about their experiences of kidney failure, how Ben’s ongoing dialysis treatment affects their lives, and how they’re supporting research.
Life-changing diagnosis
Ben, 39, started his business at the age of 18 and says: “I’ve always worked with potatoes. I started as soon as the bank would give me the money to buy the pitch. My old man was a potato merchant, so I grew up around it.
“Before my diagnosis, I was just a normal 20-year-old lad travelling to events with my spud trailer and doing festivals. That all changed when my kidneys failed, but through it all I’ve been determined to keep running my business, while accommodating my dialysis treatment.
“My health problems began in 2010 when I failed a medical for life insurance and went to see my doctor. I did a blood test and was sent straight to hospital. That day I crash-landed into kidney failure and immediately started dialysis treatment. My kidney function was at just 8%.
“I was in complete denial. I thought doctors would fix me and get me on my way. Obviously, it didn’t work out like that. I initially received peritoneal dialysis treatment but didn’t get on well with it and moved to haemodialysis which was better.
“Later on, I wanted to take back more control and moved to having my haemodialysis at home, but it was in 2015 while being treated in the dialysis unit that I met Sarah. Without my kidney failure we wouldn’t have our life together.”
Becoming Spudwife
Sarah, a 37-year-old nurse, first became familiar with Ben while caring for a lady with learning difficulties. Sarah says: “The woman I cared for had renal failure and we used to go into the unit during the afternoons for dialysis. As she was coming off her session, Ben would come in for his. We used to ask after him because he was a bit of a unique patient. He used to paint his models and play on his Xbox, and we’d joke about him.
“I then got a job on the unit because I felt the patient experience could have been better, and Ben ended up coming back in after his first transplant was unsuccessful. Now, here we are, nearly a decade later!
“Ben has two boys from a previous relationship, and I’ve got my children, but we’re lucky because we’ve had our four youngest babies while Ben has been on dialysis, which is quite rare. We’re thankful for everything good in our lives. Dialysis is challenging but we don’t let the kidney problems define us.”
Unsuccessful transplants
Receiving dialysis treatment multiple times each week, for hours at a time can be exhausting. Most patients seek a kidney transplant to replace the need for dialysis if it is a possibility, but transplants only last an average of 20 years and are not always successful.
Ben says: “I’ve had three transplants over the years, but unfortunately none of them have lasted very long because of my rare condition – membranous nephropathy – which is aggressive and a recurring problem. With current treatment options, I will be on dialysis for the rest of my life.
“It took me quite a long time to be well enough to go onto the transplant list initially, but when I did have my first transplant in 2014 it felt like winning the lottery. It lasted just six months before failing, but I’m always very grateful to my living donor.
“My second transplant was in 2016 from a deceased donor but I became very ill and had to resume dialysis again. I knew my third transplant in 2019 was my last chance. That was also from a deceased donor, and we are incredibly grateful for their kindness. Doctors did all they could, but my illness caused that kidney to fail too.”
Reflecting on that time, Sarah says: “One of my proudest moments for Ben, was watching him walk back onto the dialysis unit knowing that he was never going to get another transplant, because I know how difficult that was for him.
“It’s a huge rollercoaster. Everyone thinks you’re going to get this transplant and it’ll just start working but that’s not how it happens. You just go with it and make the best out of a rubbish situation. You can live a good life on dialysis, and there are a lot of people who do.”
Life on dialysis
Followers will know about Ben’s dialysis from the videos he has shared explaining his treatment, and he says: “Quite a few people with kidney problems come up to the trailer. I think they appreciate me showing a positive perspective on living with the illness and raising awareness.
“I dialyse at home when I’m asleep because there’s no time in the day. It’s either work, kids or free time that I’m not going to give up. Thankfully I’ve been given the opportunity to have dialysis at home – I know not everyone has that. I’ve always worked for myself, which helps too because I can be flexible with my time off. If I was employed, I would’ve struggled more.
“We try to show people that even though treatment is difficult, it’s not the end of the world. It is inconvenient and the need to dialyse makes it harder to be away from home, but some people think without a transplant you’ll just die.”
Being a partner of somebody with kidney failure poses its own challenges, and Sarah says: “Ben is a very positive person but sometimes he finds it harder than he lets on. He’ll bounce around the trailer and then come home feeling not so great. Dialysis affects the whole family, but we try our best to keep everything as normal as possible.
“I plan my shifts around Ben’s treatment, and we’re lucky his dialysis equipment is portable enough to take with us in the car when we go away – even though it requires a lot of preparation.
“Ben has a good relationship with his consultant which helps, and his dialysis team have always been so supportive. They genuinely care and organise get-togethers for patients to meet others with renal failure, so they feel less alone.
“I’m proud of how much we’ve managed to do while on dialysis: having our children, running the business and going on holidays. We’ve had messages from people facing renal failure or starting dialysis, who are feeling down. They’ve told us that watching Ben helped them feel more positive that they can still live their life.”
Supporting research
Ben’s openness about kidney failure and dialysis is raising awareness, and he has also used his popularity to raise money for our work at Kidney Research UK.
Ben says: “We ran a ‘free day’ in January where we served free jacket potatoes from the trailer in Tamworth. People had the option to donate some money if they could and we raised over £11,000. It was a mad day. People came from all over the world and queued for hours!
“Kidney Research UK is very close to our hearts and helping to fund research into better treatments is important. I’d love to see options like wearable dialysis machines or artificial kidneys that could transform my life. I’d jump at the chance to give them a go.”
Sarah adds: “We might not have found a cure yet, but it’s exciting to see what is happening and to think how it could relate to us in the future. I enjoy reading the positive stories and breakthroughs that are making a real difference to peoples’ lives.”