Paddy McGuinness details his battle with depression

Paddy McGuinness has detailed his battle with clinical depression and revealed it was his estranged wife Christine who spotted the symptoms.

The TV presenter, 49, admitted that he ‘wasn’t aware’ of how low he had become and said he found himself losing his temper quickly as he looked back on his struggles.

Paddy said he found himself starting to resent his job as he would have to make crowds of people laugh before having to go home feeling unhappy himself.

Speaking on the Monday Mile podcast, Paddy said he was diagnosed with clinical depression after his then-wife Christine, 35, spotted the symptoms.

He said: ‘In my experience, with something like depression – I was diagnosed as clinically depressed and I wasn’t aware of it.

Support: Speaking on the Monday Mile podcast, Paddy said he was diagnosed with clinical depression after his then-wife Christine, 35, spotted the symptoms

‘You can be as low as low can be and it’s the people around you that tell you.

‘So Christine and a few of my family members would say stuff and ask if I was okay and I would think ‘why are they always asking me that?’

‘But obviously you can’t see it yourself, it’s in your head, it’s not like you’ve got a limp where people can spot it and you can spot.’

Clinical depression is a low mood that lasts for days or months and affects your daily life, with symptoms including feeling hopeless and having low self-esteem.

Paddy explained that he found himself growing frustrated and becoming easily angered as he admitted he started to resent his job.

He continued: ‘I started resenting being in front of a crowd of people and making them laugh because I used to think “it’s alright for you lot but I’m going home feeling like this”.

‘I’ve never been that much of a person losing my temper but I could feel myself in certain situations getting wound up quicker and I just thought that’s not me.

‘I wasn’t going round throwing cups at the b****y wall and shouting but I could feel myself feeling angry straight away and I shouldn’t be feeling that.’

Hard times: Paddy explained that he found himself growing frustrated and becoming easily angered as he admitted he started to resent his job

Exes: Paddy and Christine were married for 11 years before they split last July but they have continued to live together for the sake of their children

Paddy said he tried going to therapy but spoke to two different people who he thought were ‘rubbish’, saying he had completely ‘given up’.

However, he said he then found another doctor who worked for him, urging other people not to give up and keep going to find someone who can help them.

He said: ‘I kind of look at therapy like buying shoes – it’s about not giving up on it and I nearly did.

‘If you try therapy and that doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t mean that all therapy won’t, just keep going until you find that one. It might take you bloody six times but it’s worth it.’

The comedian said he used to see his therapist once a week and admitted he felt ‘relieved’ when he was told he had clinical depression, saying he now checks in with his doctor once every few months.

Elsewhere on the podcast, Paddy touched on his recent BBC documentary Our Family and Autism.

Paddy and his estranged wife Christine share three kids, twins Leo and Penelope, eight, and Felicity, five, who have all been diagnosed with autism.

Speaking about the documentary, he said: ‘It took five or six years to get it made and [me and Christine] wanted to talk about it because we have been in so many horrendous situations and didn’t know which way to turn.’

Christine was also diagnosed with autism in 2021 and opened up about her late diagnosis in a second BBC documentary, Unmasking My Autism.

Autism refers to a broad range of conditions characterised by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication.

Family: Christine recently shed light on their living arrangement , insisting she and Paddy will ‘always’ be family following their split

Paddy and Christine were married for 11 years before they split last July but they have continued to live together for the sake of their children.

Christine recently shed light on their living arrangement, insisting she and Paddy will ‘always’ be family following their split. 

Appearing on Tuesday’s Lorraine, she said: ‘We want to keep things the same as much as possible for the children.

‘I don’t want anything to affect them. We’ll always be family and we’re living in a happy home.’

If you have been affected by this story, you can call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org.