04 August 2023 , 18:04
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Appearing on The One Show, Amanda Abbington has announced that she will be joining the latest round of celebrities to take part in Strictly Come Dancing, which is set to commence in September this year.
Joining Amanda, who is best known for playing Josie Mardle in Mr Selfridge and Mary Morstan in Sherlock, in the Strictly line-up so far is BBC presenter Angela Rippon and Bad Education star Layton Williams.
Recently, Amanda bravely opened up about her mental health, admitting that when she split up from ex-partner Martin Freeman she contemplated suicide. She admitted the devastating split from the 51-year-old Office star left the 49-year-old "hating" herself after their 16-year relationship ended, saying that it left her a "mess." They never tied the knot, but share two kids together - Joe, 17, and Grace, 16.
The pair split after 16 years and it left Amanda a 'mess' (PA)Amanda, who stars as Martin's on-screen wife in BBC's Sherlock explained just how much the split affected her in the immediate aftermath, calling suicide a "genuine thought for me." Speaking on the Full Disclosure podcast with James O'Brien, she discussed her mental health, saying: "It was breaking up with Martin and then realising I needed to sort myself out because I was a bit of a mess. I hated myself."
She also spoke about a recent moment that had deeply impacted her, saying: "It was funny because the other day, and I've never told anyone, not even my therapist, I’d had a row with Grace because she couldn't find her uniform and was late for school.
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"So in the end I had to drive her to school instead of the bus and I was sitting in the car and I was having a go at her and I was getting nothing back from her because she's a 15-year-old and she's going through all this stuff. She's a girl, I'm a mother - rage, anxiety. And I was sat there as I was driving, in my head, and I haven't said this since I started therapy six years ago, 'you could always kill yourself'.
"And that was what my mantra used to be. If you've let people down and upset somebody or if you're not being the best you can or you're a bad mother, or you're not stepping up with your acting, you can always kill yourself." And she admitted that to her, this was always an "option." However, she confessed the last time she had that thought was six years ago, at a similar time to her devastating split from Martin. The pair both have new partners, with Amanda engaged to Jonathan Goodwin, 43, while Martin is dating French actress Rachel Mariam, 30.
If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch