Romesh Ranganathan has candidly opened up about his battles with suicidal thoughts while raising funds for a mental health charity by taking part in the 2024 London Marathon.
The 46-year-old comedian was one of more than 50,000 people who took to the streets of the UK capital this weekend to participate in the epic 26.3 mile race - passing by major landmarks. Many of those taking part raise funds for a wide range of charities - while also raising awareness of the good work the institutions carry out.
Taking to the streets on Sunday as one of the people running in the epic race, Romesh explained why he selected the charity CALM - an acronym for Campaign Against Living Miserably - as the charity he was supporting. The TV star has been a patron for the charity since 2023 and has opened up about his own mental health struggles in the past.
Before undertaking the gruelling challenge of running more than 26 miles, Romesh once again shared some of his experiences. He also explained that he was taking a practical approach to running the race and wouldn’t be fighting to hit a specific time.
Romesh was one of many celebrities taking part in the 2024 London Marathon (PA)Opening up to Gabby Logan on BBC Sport, Romesh said: “I've talked about it a few times, I came close to taking my own life in the past and it's something I feel strongly about in terms of mental health issues. And Calm is a really great charity for raising awareness and so it was both about raising the money and just raising the awareness of the work that they do, so that's why I'm running.”
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Encouraging fans to donate to his cause, he added: “And, I do want to say, whatever donations I get I'm going to match them… To a limit obviously, I don't want to lose my house over this.” Gabby, 50, then asked: “What's your limit?” And then joked: “Did you say a million to me before?” Romesh quickly laughed: “No Gabby I didn't say that!” Asked what time he hoped to complete the race in, the comedian said: “My target time is to finish while the roads are still closed. That is the aim for me, if I get that, that's me done.”
In February last year, Romesh bravely opened up about the dark thoughts he has endured in the past. He told The Diary Of A CEO Podcast: "I was thinking about taking my own life regularly, and I'd fantasise about it... I think that all comedians are wired slightly differently. They've had something happen to them that has made them an outsider in some way."
He continued: "I'm addicted to doing stand-up. And it makes me better at everything. But... I've got this inner voice that is horrific. It will say, 'you're not a very good Dad, you're not a very good husband.' I had a run of about six panel shows, and I was in a really bad place, and I turned up to each one of them with the steadfast belief that I was sh*t at this."
He added: "But you learn more from those gigs. I just need to do the best I possibly can at this gig, I'm not in control of anything that happens after that. Don't think about this goal down the line that you're trying to get to. Do this thing brilliantly, and if you love what you do and you do that, you're on a good path." You can donate to Romesh's London Marathon cause by clicking here.,
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email info@mind.org.uk
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