An eagle-eyed fellow fan spotted ‘60s pop veteran Rick Wild amongst the crowd when Town beat Manchester United last week.

Raising his thumb to the camera alongside wife Kay, the lifelong Terrier looked as if he hadn’t a care in the world.

But Rick is lucky to be alive after a freak accident last year that put him in hospital for weeks with a traumatically enlarged pancreas.

And, just as he was well on the way to recovery, he fell at his Huddersfield home and damaged his neck.

The last 16 months have been a testing time for the rock ‘n’ roller, who will be 70 in November. But he’s determined to bounce back from adversity.

He said: “I nearly died last year. I was shopping and a car came from the top of the car park and ran over me. The handbrake failed.

“I heard a squeal, looked up and put my hands out to defend myself, but I ended up under the car with it on my stomach and legs.

“The paramedics came and I was complaining about my hip and leg. It was all a blur to me.”

Rick, who lives in Salendine Nook, was taken to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary but allowed home. A few days later he collapsed.

“My daughter sent for the surgeon because I was yellow. It wasn’t my hip, it was my pancreas. My surgeon thought I was going to lose it.”

Rick Wild - Rick Wild relaxes with some of his memorabilia 25/10/17 (Pic by Dave Howarth)

Rick was eventually treated at Leeds General Infirmary. He lost two stones in weight in a fortnight.

But there were other factors. Medical staff spotted a shadow on his lung that they thought might have been caused by a rib hitting it during the accident, and his knee was weakened, which led to him falling at home.

“I’d got a torn ligament in my knee, and my knee just kept going. One day I was at the top of the stairs and I went straight down, breaking my wrist. I felt bad so I went to A&E. It turns out it was a lot more than that.

“They thought I had broken my neck, so I was strapped to a spinal board for seven hours. They wanted to send me home wearing a spinal collar, but they could only find two: a big one and a child’s. That’s all they had in a trauma unit the size of Huddersfield’s.

“It’s all been quite a shock, and that’s why I’ve been quiet.

“Apart from that, I’m fine!” he laughs. “I’m raring to go. I’m working on a new album with a load of superb songs, all original material.

“I came out of hospital on crutches but I was supposed to be headlining a charity event in Mytholmroyd. I still turned up and sang a few songs. It was very strange; I was on a crutch with a mike in the other hand. But it’s true what they say: the show must go on.”

Rick still harbours ambitions to get back on stage.

“Gigging at the moment is on hold. I keep looking at Christmas and the wife looks at me and shakes her head in despair.

“My eldest lad says I am wrong in my head. I think I’m still 21.”

Rick was still in his teens when his band, The Overlanders, released the first of 12 singles in 1963.

Rick Wild - Some of Rick Wild's memorabilia 25/10/17 (Pic by Dave Howarth)

They’re perhaps most famous for their cover of The Beatles’ classic ‘Michelle’, which Paul McCartney is said to have based on Rick’s romance with a French diplomat’s daughter. The Fab Four never released ‘Michelle’ as a single but The Overlanders did, and it went to number one in the British singles chart in January 1966.

They also enjoyed success in the United States, signing to a different label. Their song Yesterday’s Gone entered the Billboard 100 and stayed there for seven weeks. In fact The Overlanders enjoyed Stateside success before The Beatles “conquered” America.

In recent years Rick has released two solo albums with indie label Sound Blitz. A third has been on hiatus since his accident.

“They’ve stuck with me. The album was due to come out last Christmas and then everything stopped. No one realised it was going to be as long as it has been. The release date changed to Easter and we missed that, too. So there’s no deadline now. But as soon as I get the green light we’ll be away.

“I did a bit of a song about a month ago, so I have finished that. At the moment I can’t hold the notes long enough. I was hoarse; I couldn’t get my breath. There is debris from the impact of the accident that is stopping my lung inflating properly. Once the doctors have done their thing I’ll be fine. They have to hoover my lung out.

“The album is half done, with eight songs complete. They want 16 to choose from. And when I’m not singing I’m taking photographs at my studio Infiniti in Milnsbridge.

“So I’ll be back. I’m a Terrier, mate! It’s not just the team that can pull off some shots.”