05 January 2024 , 15:49
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Hannah Spearritt has revealed she has been suffering panic attacks since the death of S Club bandmate Paul Cattermole.
The pop star is one of the celebs appearing in the upcoming Dancing on Ice series, which kicks off on ITV on Sunday, January 14. But the past year has been less than kind to the 42-year-old, who has been homeless, overcome debilitating health issues and lost former boyfriend Paul, who died unexpectedly from ‘hidden’ heart disease in April 2023 at the age of just 46.
Paul’s sudden death came just weeks after S Club had announced their plans for a huge 25th anniversary reunion tour. While fellow bandmates Jo O’Meara, Rachel Stevens, Tina Barrett, Jon Lee and Bradley McIntosh went ahead with the shows and paid tribute to Paul on stage, Hannah dropped out of the line-up at the last minute.
Hannah with late ex Paul, who she previously dated twice while in S Club (PA)
Hannah is one of the celebs appearing in this year's Dancing on Ice, which starts next weekend (Instagram)Explaining her decision to leave the band was to protect her health after she struggled to cope with Paul's passing, she wrote in her memoir, Facing The Music: “I was extremely excited — we all were — to get back as a seven. But then Paul died and everything changed.
"It gave me time to reflect on whether it was the right thing for me to do. I hadn’t been in the best of health — I’ve got a compromised immune system and stress makes it worse. My body just couldn’t cope with everything that was happening. I wasn’t myself."
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Though the band have said the door will always be open for Hannah to return, she said: "Will I ever perform with them again? I just don't know. I'm glad that the tour is still going ahead and the songs will live on, but now I'm looking forward, not backwards."
Paul with the rest of S Club, who announced a reunion tour weeks before his death last year (Getty Images)After taking some time out, Hannah is stepping back into the limelight for the new series of Dancing on Ice and has been partnered with Andy Buchanan. But she admits she “couldn’t have managed this six months ago”.
She told MailOnline: “When you push yourself out of your comfort zone, you start flying on a different plane. Now I’m noticing an increase in my energy levels and my mental health is improving too. Someone said to me they’d noticed just how much more I’m genuinely smiling.”
The stress and grief of losing ex Paul left Hannah, who experiences autoimmune issues and was in rehab in 2013 after developing a painkiller addiction from an adverse reaction to breast implant surgery, suffering crippling panic attacks, as well as vertigo and fatigue, leaving her with little energy.
To add to her problems, Hannah, along with fitness instructor partner Adam Thomas and their two daughters Taya, five, and three-year-old Tora, were left homeless just before Christmas 2022 and were forced to move into a friend’s office after losing their rented house.
The family have since relocated, but looking back on that time in her life Hannah, who says she was paid a fraction of the £50 million S Club raked in at the height of their fame, said: “I had a bad Christmas [2022] and it just snowballed. Quite a few things happened and I think it affected my body. I get quite emotional about it now because I feel so much better. When I look back over the last year I realise just how much better I am.”
*Dancing on Ice starts on Sunday, January 14 at 6.30pm on ITV and ITVX