Blumenthal, 59, was diagnosed with bipolar two years ago, though he’d been unknowingly living with the condition for decades. Speaking to camera throughout the BBC Two documentary, he recounts how he knew he wasn’t quite the same as everyone else – he describes feeling that his creativity was “unstoppable”, likening the experience to sweets pouring down from the sky.
square TV REVIEWS Murder Most Puzzling is a less charming version of Ludwig
Read More
Two years on from his diagnosis, Blumenthal’s mood has stabilised, thanks to the myriad medicines he takes. But they are not without their side effects: his speech has slowed and they have made him gain weight, but the chef’s main concern with his new routine is whether the drugs will quash his creativity.
Indeed, one of the most touching moments in the film comes when Blumenthal meets up with his son Jack, who is also a chef. While Blumenthal was oblivious to the effects his mental state was having on his family, Jack tells him just how difficult it was to spend time together. “We just wanted a relaxing conversation with our dad, and we weren’t allowed to have one. You didn’t want to know anyone’s thoughts. I just don’t think you gave a s***,” he says.
Natalie McLellan’s daughter died by suicide after she struggled to get help with managing her bipolar disorder (Photo: BBC Studios/Joe Myerscough)
Rebecca McLellan was diagnosed with bipolar at 22 – she died by suicide just two years later. Blumenthal meets her mum, Natalie, who remembers with bravery her daughter’s struggle to get in touch with mental health services. She shows a video of Rebecca at a crisis clinic, where she is told to leave and threatened with the police – it’s a disgusting, all too revealing example of how people with mental illnesses can be treated even when they are trying to get help. Blumenthal cries again – as did I.
Yet it seems we will only pay attention when a celebrity spills their own guts out, exposing their own worst moments. Heston Blumenthal shouldn’t have to cry on camera for us to care. Yet, if his film helps just one person reach out for help, it will be worth it.
‘Heston: My Life with Bipolar’ is streaming on BBC iPlayer
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Heston Blumenthal’s brutally honest conversation with his son will break your heart )
Also on site :