12 May 2024 , 17:00
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The hugely talented award winning actress Sarah Lancashire has faced incredible battles in her personal life, including crippling depression with led to a nervous breakdown.
Sarah Lancashire has been nominated for her sixth BAFTA TV Award, having already won two of the prestigious gongs. She's up for leading actress for her portrayal of Sgt Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley, which aired its third and final series in February 2022. Sarah, who more recently starred as Julia Child in Julia, an HBO comedy based on the extraordinary life of the late 1960s American chef, is a highly respected talent within the industry. In 2017 she was awarded an OBE for services to drama – but her life away from the cameras is a humble one.
The 59 year old actress has also battled her fair share of health issues behind the scenes, having been diagnosed with clinical depression at the age of 18. She suffered a nervous breakdown in the 1990s, during which point she described herself as a "ticking time bomb waiting to go off". Sarah also said she'd be left 'hysterical' by just the 'thought of getting out of bed', but forced herself to do it anyway over fear of people's reactions.
Sarah Lancashire as Sgt Catherine in Happy Valley (BBC/Red Productions)"I was terrified of being judged and misunderstood," she admitted. While her family were aware of her plight, she didn't tell anybody at work what she was going through. At the time, Sarah was a well-known TV actress playing Rovers Return barmaid Raquel Watts on Coronation Street. She has since called this silence the "worst thing" she could have done, because as someone in the public eye, "you can really make a difference" speaking about "subjects that are taboo."
She has also detailed how severe her depression can be in an interview with The Sun, admitting it restricts her from being able to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
Sarah Lancashire feared telling TV bosses about 'debilitating depression battle'
"I have never known what it feels like to wake up in the morning, full of the joys of spring, and wander through the day feeling capable of coping," she explained. Her symptoms only worsened after she was prescribed tranquillisers that left her in "a terrible mess", reducing her twenties to a total "write-off". She has since been able to manage her depression, which she calls a "cruel illness", with therapy and SSRI medication.
Sarah Lancashire with her sons in 2011 (Getty Images)
Sarah Lancashire with her BAFTA in 2017 (WireImage)Today, Sarah lives in a £3 million mansion in a leafy London neighbourhood. She shares the five-bedroom abode with her second husband, former BBC chief Peter Salmon, and their son, Joseph. Sarah also has two adult sons, Thomas and Matthew, from her previous marriage to Gary Hargreaves.
The actress has had the opportunity to live in the US for work, but has always shunned the move in order to stay close to her family. "The older that I get, the harder it is to be away from home," she said. "I love being at home. I'm very much a mum when I go home – the mums among us know it's a full-time job."
Sarah has also hailed her second marriage to Peter as "precious" in the past, revealing her determination to protect it from the media's glare. "I guard it because it's very precious. It's not a piece of drama. It is real life, my normal life. And I value my normality," she told The Sun.
Last year Sarah shared her struggles with the menopause after admitting she had two fans with her in the audience to help cool her down at the National Television Awards where she scooped the Special Recognition Award. She revealed in an interview that she was also battling brain fog as a result of it.
"I'm having the most terrible menopause," she told the Mail on Sunday. "I've got brain fog. I was in Sainsbury's the other day, and I found myself just stood there in the aisle and could not remember what I was there for. It just comes over you all of a sudden. I can't remember things that happened 30 years ago either."
While Sarah continues to be praised for her incredible performance in Happy Valley - having won a best Drama Performance and Special Recognition award at the 2023 National Television Awards - the star may now be down with acting. A report earlier this year claimed Sarah plans to turn away from the cameras - and get behind them instead.
A source claimed: "Sarah adores acting but the idea of producing had been niggling at her. She decided, once Happy Valley was over that it was a good time to get it under way. She is so excited."
The source continued to the Daily Mail: "It has been so exciting for her that even when she won her outstanding achievement award at the National Television Awards last year, she had to dash home as she was up early the next day, telling everyone she is producing now. She may have found a new passion, Sarah has never loved the limelight anyway." The Mirror contacted Sarah's representative for comment at the time.
News that Sarah is moving into the world of TV production is far from new, however, as she revealed earlier this year that she is excited to be launching her own production company, called Via Pictures. She told Deadline in January: "It's a small production company, and we're very much about developing our own ideas and fresh takes on existing ideas."
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Are you a fan of Sarah's work? Let us know in the comments below.