Welsh actor Matthew Rhys, who plays a gay lawyer in the American TV series Brothers and Sisters, was seriously injuired during a Welsh television programme, last month.
The Welsh-speaking actor almost lost his front teeth and broke his nose in a freak accident that occurred during the filming of a Christmas show for the Welsh language channel, S4C.
A calf kicked him in the face as he filmed the show which taught celebrities a range of cowboy skills.
Rhys, 34, who is originally from Cardiff, revealed he broke his strict contract with American TV series to take part in Y Saith Magnifico a Matthew Rhys (The Magnificent Seven with Mathew Rhys).
“I had to rope a calf and flip it on its back. It nearly pulled me off the horse. Foolishly, I thought I was fine. I grabbed the calf and its hoof went straight into my face. I thought: ‘oh my God, my teeth’.
“I thought I’d lost my teeth. My teeth were fine but my nose was a wreck. It was very swollen the next day and I had two black eyes.”
His contract for the US series bans him from riding horses when the show is in production, in case he gets injured.
Rhys told bosses on Brothers and Sisters he was going to a wedding when, in fact, he was filming Saith Magnifico on a ranch in Arizona.
“I said I was going to a wedding. If I had fallen off a horse or broken anything I would have been in big shit,” he admitted.
“We sign a contract saying there are things we can’t do like horse riding when we’re in production.”
Matthew, who once went on a cowboy-themed holiday with friend Ioan Gruffudd, made sure he arrived back on set early enough for his make-up artist to cover the injuries.
“I pretended I’d had an accident at the wedding,” he laughed.