Comedy icon John Cleese has made a startling admission about his mental health, revealing he is ultimately 'glad' he experienced a nervous breakdown following the collapse of his third marriage.
A Period of Deep Crisis
The 86-year-old Fawlty Towers star delves into this deeply personal struggle in his new documentary feature, John Cleese Packs It In, which was released on November 13. He recalls that his 2008 divorce from psychotherapist Alyce Faye Eichelberger plunged him into a severe depression that lasted for three months.
Cleese candidly described suffering from 'two and a half, three months of a nervous breakdown with suicidal thoughts.' He elaborated on the daily difficulty, stating, 'It was very unpleasant waking up in the morning, because you feel very, very depressed for the first couple of hours.'
Finding Perspective in the Pain
Despite the immense suffering, the veteran entertainer has come to view the experience as a pivotal moment that provided him with crucial clarity. He explained that the breakdown gave him a 'grasp on what was important in life,' acknowledging that it's easy to become distracted by less meaningful matters.
'And I think I’m glad it happened to me,' Cleese reflected, 'because it gave me a much more realistic grasp of what was important in life.'
Life On Screen and On Tour
The documentary follows Cleese on an intensive tour, visiting 16 cities across five countries in just six weeks. The film, which runs for 80 minutes, offers fans unprecedented access, showing the comedian both on stage in front of sold-out crowds and behind the scenes with his intimate touring team.
His current wife, 52-year-old Jennifer Wade, makes several appearances in the movie. The documentary also doesn't shy away from Cleese's advanced age and health ailments, with the show itself being titled Last Chance to See Me Before I Die.
At a London screening, Cleese characteristically joked about the film's revealing nature, calling it a 'hatchet job' that shows audiences 'the decrepit, addled, nasty old geriatric that my PR team work day and night to hide from the public.'
The film also touches upon the financial fallout from his divorce from Eichelberger, who was awarded $20 million (£15.5 million) in their 2008 settlement, a deal Cleese has previously complained left him financially worse off.
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