Vernon Kay has apologised to former BBC Radio 2 co-star Fearne Cotton after she opened up about a hidden mental health battle, admitting he had 'no idea' about her struggles. During the Tracks of My Years segment on his mid-morning radio show on July 7, Fearne, 44, shared details of her depression and OCD, which she had kept secret even from colleagues.
Fearne Cotton Reveals 'Awful Time' with Mental Health
Fearne, who previously hosted on Radio 1 and Radio 2, told Vernon that the pressure of live TV and constant paparazzi attention led to a severe mental health crisis in her late 20s and early 30s. 'I just felt paranoid that someone was photographing me, taking the bins out, whatever. Paparazzi would get on flights at Heathrow and fly to LA to like pap me at the other end,' she said. 'And I'll be like, "I'm getting off a flight. I'm not even doing anything". And then I went through just a terrible time of mental health in my late 20s, early 30s, where the press stuff was awful, the pressure of being on air amongst it all.'
Mental Health Not Discussed at the Time
Fearne noted that mental health was not widely talked about during that period, so she dealt with it alone. 'I very much, like many people have, and still sadly do, dealt with it all in my own head. You know, I didn't say to a single person, not my producer, anyone, "I am on the brink of this like not being okay". I just, I took medication, and I went to work every day. And I felt dreadful for most of that period,' she explained.
Vernon Kay's Apology
Vernon responded, 'Well, I apologise. I had no idea,' to which Fearne clarified that she 'didn't tell anyone.' The conversation came after Vernon asked whether she had found TV 'gruelling.' Fearne admitted she hadn't initially, but the career led to overwhelming scrutiny.
Fearne's Career and Current Focus
Fearne began her TV career at age 15 on GMTV's The Disney Club. Now 44, she has stepped back from live TV and radio to focus on her wellness brand, Happy Place, and the accompanying podcast. Earlier this year, she told Metro that she had bulimia and OCD, linking these issues to people-pleasing. 'I'm not saying that every single mental and physical issue I've had is down to people pleasing, but it's definitely contributed to everything from very low self-esteem and poor mental health. I had bulimia, and I had OCD at one point, I'm not saying that that's entirely down to people pleasing, but I do think part of it was just trying to keep everybody happy, totally neglecting myself, as many of us do,' she said.
