Damian Lewis wrote album amid heartache after sad death of wife Helen McCrory

13 April 2023 , 13:40

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Damian Lewis wrote album amid heartache after sad death of wife Helen McCrory

Damian Lewis is overhauling his career on the silver screen after landing a huge record deal.

The Homeland actor, 52, has secured a contract with Decca Records and will put out his debut album Mission Creep on June 16.

The talented actor has made slight moves into the music world in recent years with a series of small live shows, but the actor has now officially released the first single from his album, which he has called Down On The Bowery.

Damian is believed to have penned the album amid his heartache following the sad death of his Peaky Blinders actress wife Helen McCrory.

Helen died of breast cancer at her home in London on 16 April 2021, aged 52. Announcing the tragic death on Twitter, her husband Damian stated that she had died 'peacefully at home, surrounded by a wave of love from friends and family.'

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Damian has released his first single from the album (Getty Images)

Two years on from Helen's passing, Damian has revealed that penning the album came 'naturally' to him amid his heartache.

"I suddenly had a lot to say. People will judge if it’s any good or not, but for me it felt natural," he revealed.

After Helen’s death, Damian wrote a touching tribute to her, where he recalled how she had told the couple’s 16-year-old daughter Manon, and 15-year-old Gulliver son that she had given him her blessing to find love again.

He wrote: “She said to us from her bed, ‘I want Daddy to have girlfriends, lots of them, you must all love again, love isn’t possessive, but you know, Damian, try at least to get through the funeral without snogging someone.”

Damian Lewis is overhauling his career on the silver screen after landing a huge record deal (Getty Images)

Helen passed away from a battle with breast cancer in 2021 (Hahn Lionel/ABACA/REX/Shutterstock)

The Homeland actor started to write the album during lockdown having had experience as a busker during his youth.

"I wanted the album to give a sense of a journey to this point – from busking until now," he said of his album.

His first solo album will be titled Mission Creep, and will be out this summer on Decca records, following a huge bidding war between the major labels.

The British actor, who also played Henry VIII in Wolf Hall, has written a collection of 'poetic, poignant and deeply personal' songs with a 'raw and refreshing honesty'.

Damian penned the album amid his heartache following Helen's death (Getty Images North America)

Helen died at the age of 52 after a battle with breast cancer (PA)

Of his album, Lewis told the Mirror: "It encompasses many life experiences, and won’t take Sherlock Holmes to work out what some of those are.”

His love of music started when he left school, after studying at Eton, and went busking through Europe, where he says he could earn up to '20 to 30 quid an hour'.

Actor Damian Lewis lands record deal and eyes release of his debut album

Damian said he rediscovered his love of the guitar during the lockdown.

Susan Knox