Paul thanks rescue staff in hospital

PAUL Nicholls gives the thumbs-up in his hospital bed as he recovers from his dramatic waterfall plunge.

The ex-EastEnder, 38, thanked rescuers who found him after two days in the water with a broken kneecap in Koh Samui, Thailand.

The actor, who said he has no travel insurance, is at a state-run hospital on the island where medics said he asked to be moved from a pricier private facility.

Paul, who played Joe Wicks in the soap, said: “The money I’d saved was travelling money, and I didn’t want to spend it on [hospital]. My step-father’s bearing the brunt of the bill.”

Officials said Paul, injured on July 10, would be returning to the UK “soon”.