BAFTA-Winner Adam Deacon Opens Up About His Struggle With Bipolar Disorder

British actor Adam Deacon has spoken out about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder in a new documentary with Stephen Fry.

Deacon, now 33, has been making headlines since winning the BAFTA Rising Star Award in 2012, but it’s his off-screen issues that’ve been in the press in recent years, starting with a very public falling out with fellow Brit actor Noel Clarke.

His life began to unravel, when he was arrested and taken to court for harassment and threatening a neighbour before being ruled mentally ill. Deacon was subsequently sectioned for three weeks after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Now on the road to recovery, he’s publicly speaking out about mental illness and his personal experiences.

A new a BBC documentary addresses the stigma of mental illness and discusses mental health, especially when you’re famous. The short doc’s only around 12 minutes but it’s a fascinating, eye-opening exploration into being bipolar and offers advice on how to deal with it.

Watch the doc below:

“I’m still on a journey to learn more about it,” Deacon says at the beginning, having been diagnosed a year ago. He goes on to explain how it’s affected him, and highlights the affects it has with fellow sufferer Stephen Fry.

Fry reveals how he got expelled from school and went to prison at a young age but, like Deacon, has turned his life around, which is inspiring considering the Stephen Fry we are familiar with today.

Deacon’s best known for working on films such as ‘Kidulthood’, ‘Adulthood’, and ‘Anuvahood’. He’s starred in a number of other films as well as TV programmes like Danny Boyle-directed ‘Babylon’ yet dealing with his health has meant acting has taken a backseat, but he says he’s getting his career and life sorted.

The doc celebrates coming to terms with having the illness and also reveals how he’s getting his life going again. “I’m writing music again and I’ve started getting acting work - things are looking up.”

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Picture credit: BBC