LINE of Duty star Stephen Graham has revealed he attempted suicide amid ‘really bad’ depression.
The 46-year-old actor has a stellar career, appearing in the last series of the BBC One police drama as well as Boardwalk Empire and the This is England trilogy.
He’s also appeared in films including Gangs of New York and will next be seen in Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman alongside Robert De Niro and Al Pacino.
However, his success comes after a tumultous time in his early 20s, with Stephen telling The Sunday Times: “In my early twenties, I suffered from really bad depression and tried to take my own life once.
“Thankfully, the rope snapped and I’m here today.
“But I know the loneliness, isolation and feeling you can’t cope in the world.”
Stephen grew up in Kirkby, and also told the publication how he feels like Britain’s working-class community has been forgotten on TV.
He said: “When Scully was on, you also had Boys from the Blackstuff, Minder, GBH, even Grange Hill was proper gritty – never making fun of, and always being a part of, the working class.
“Now that voice has gone.”
While Stephen does his best to represent people from different backgrounds or nationalities, he admitted he relies on his wife Hannah Walters to read his scripts and help him choose the right roles.
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He said: “I’m dyslexic so I struggle. My missus actually reads the script and says whether or not I’m doing it. She’s made some good choices.
“I have to read it and read it and read it, then make it look like it’s the first time I’m saying it.”