Steve Jones has revealed he once saved rapper P Diddy’s life after pulling him from the sea during a boat party in St Tropez. The Welsh television presenter made the admission on a 2017 episode of the BBC panel show Would I Lie To You?, a moment that resurfaced amid renewed attention to Diddy’s legal case this year.
Jones said Diddy jumped into the water while hungover, quickly realized he couldn’t swim, and cried out for help. Jones swam to him, wrapped his arms around the rapper’s chest and towed him back to the boat, helping him onto the ladder as Diddy thanked him. He said the two were on the same boat, arranged through a mutual friend, Derek Evans of Pontypridd, and that the night had been “pretty steaming” before Diddy went for a dip and started calling for help.
On Would I Lie To You?, host Rob Brydon and the panel pressed for details as the story unfolded. David Mitchell asked whether the two simply crossed paths on a different boat, while Fiona Bruce asked how it happened. Jones persisted, and after the panel members voted that the tale might be a lie, he declared, "It is true."
Separately, Diddy has faced federal charges in recent years. He is facing up to 20 years in prison at an Oct. 3 sentencing on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution; he was acquitted of the more serious charges—sex trafficking and racketeering—at a federal trial on July 2, according to the source notes.
Jones’s account adds a personal, long-standing thread to the celebrity circle around Diddy, illustrating how stories from the Riviera partying circuit have long circulated in entertainment media. The anecdote from the Would I Lie To You? episode, first shared years ago, has taken on renewed prominence as headlines have focused on Diddy’s ongoing legal matters and public life. The partnership among friends and acquaintances in the entertainment world often yields stories that persist beyond the moment, sometimes resurfacing in interviews or retrospectives years later.