Strictly's Josh Widdicombe admits he collapsed while struggling with alcohol and parenting
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Josh Widdicombe has admitted he once collapsed while struggling with alcohol addiction and the pressures of parenting. The comedian, 41, who takes to the dancefloor on Christmas Day for the Strictly Come Dancing festive special, is one of the UK's most popular comedians. However, off-screen, Josh has gone through a tough time, admitting he suffered a breakdown in 2022 while trying to manage his relationship with alcohol, stress and parenting.
Reflecting on his past, the Mock The Week star admits he would often drink to excess, throwing up and blacking out. Opening up about his relationship with alcohol, he revealed it "was very unhealthy". Josh told The Times: "I've always had a very unhealthy relationship with alcohol. I didn’t do it every day so it took me ages to realise I had a problem." However, when Josh's drinking started to impact his parenting, he knew something had to change.
He insisted that he didn't want to be an absent father and was concerned that his drinking was starting to take its toll, however he was also worried about his career. Josh shares two children with wife Rose Hanson, daughter, Pearl, seven, and son, Cassius, three. The QI panellist said: "I never wanted to be an absent dad. And yet I didn’t want to let my career slide either. So I piled even more pressure on myself. Everything was pressure. Eventually I just kind of collapsed.".
Explaining that being honest about his mental health improved his comedy routine, he shared: "It was just overwork, burnout, leading to depression and anxiety … And I was funnier being more honest. If I talk about closing my eyes and not being able to sleep because I am having an anxiety attack, that's funny.".
