Vernon Kay has recalled the moment he saved his brother from drowning when they were children as he opened up on his treacherous experiences while travelling.

The TV personality, 51, has been put in danger more than the average holidaymaker as he revealed that he has been poisoned, suffered hallucinations and been concussed while abroad.

He told The Times that during a family holiday in Portugal with his parents and younger sibling, Steven, he saved his brother, who was drowning in their villa pool.

'Dad, Mum and my younger brother, Steven, stayed in a villa in Praia da Luz on the Algarve with uncles, aunts and cousins', he said.

'One time I saved my brother from drowning, he had dived into the pool and started panicking, so he owes me one for that.'

He then admitted that his near-traumatising experiences abroad did not end there, because he got a concussion aged 16 during a school ski trip to Northern Italy.

Vernon explained that he was not wearing a helmet at the time and ventured on to the icy slopes. He then fell, hit his head and ended up with a concussion.

And his holiday woes do not end there as he suffered terrible food poisoning in Marrakesh, which left him in the foetal position for three weeks.

The poisoning left him vomiting, suffering hot sweats while freezing and battling 'terrible hallucinations'.

And this was also not his only brush with serious poisoning, as he nearly touched a 'highly toxic' and poisonous fish while sailing with his wife Tess Daly, 56, in Turkey.

'We were fishing off a boat and caught a puffer fish, and the captain shouted: 'Do not touch that! Poison; highly toxic!'', he said.

Vernon and Tess, who wed in 2003, share Phoebe, 20, and Amber, 16.

And while the couple keep their family life private, they have recently opened up on their unusual parenting rules as he gave a rare insight into family life with his daughters.

In most households, one parent takes the good cop role while the other is known as the bad cop, but Vernon and Tess make sure to alternate the roles.

He told The Mirror: 'We play good cop, bad cop, but alternate the roles. You have to keep 'em guessing. They'll always be my little girls.'

He added: 'We've not pushed them in a certain direction, to continue their education or whatever. It's totally up to them.

'As a parent, you can only hold their hand and say, 'This is right or wrong' for so long. There's got to be a point where you take them off the lead and let them discover life.'