12 April 2023 , 13:14
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The face of the Go Compare adverts showed off his five stone weight loss following the collapse of his marriage and mental health struggle.
Wynne Evans, 51, opened up about why he decided to overhaul his lifestyle during Wednesday’s episode of This Morning.
Speaking to presenters Craig Doyle, 52, and Josie Gibson, 38, the opera singer revealed he had decided to shift some weight after he began experiencing “trouble getting up the stairs.”
The Welsh tenor also admitted his “mental health hasn't been great for the past five or six years.”
Asked how he was feeling now, Wynne said: “I feel great actually, it's been calories. I've always been fat, I thought ‘I've gotta do something'.
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“I was having trouble washing and getting up the stairs. My mental health hasn't been great in the last five or six years, and it really helped.”
Craig and Josie chatted to Go Compare icon Wynne Evans (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)The dad-of-two has been a recognisable face of British adverts since he burst onto our screens as Gio Compario, best known for his larger-than-life persona, jingle, tuxedo and curled moustache.
However, despite the fame and fortune it hasn’t been an easy ride as Wynne has experienced his own personal difficulties.
Wynne, who lives in Cardiff, Wales, says he even contemplated taking his own life when his marriage came to an end in 2016, with the dark period being "the saddest (he had) ever been in (his) life".
Given both of his parents had passed away by this point, Wynne said he had "nobody there"; he felt abandoned, and he started to experience suicidal thoughts.
Food had always been a source of comfort for Wynne during times of stress or hardship, even as a youngster, so "eating became second nature" and he reached his heaviest weight of 150 kilos (23.6 stone) following the split from his now ex-wife.
Reaching that weight meant he had to find specific retailers who sold his clothing size - a 5XL - and he even worried about chairs breaking beneath him, however, at the time, he did his utmost to hide his anxiety and depression from the world.
Wynne is best known for being in the Go Compare adverts (REX/Shutterstock)
The dad-of-two has opened up about his weight loss (PA Real Life)
Wyyne Evans opened up about his five stone weight loss on This Morning (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)"I was doing a daily radio show where the feel of it is upbeat and keeping people in a good mood and cheering up the nation," he said.
"The strapline of my show is, 'cheering Wales up by one o'clock,' but I was going through the worst depression, clinical depression.
"I would think about (suicide), I would try and action it... I couldn't see a way out; I couldn't see a way of ever being happy again."
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However, one Easter Sunday, Wynne said everything came to a head and he knew he needed help, and he "started to try and put (his) life back together".
He continued: "I was feeling suicidal, and it was terrible.
"I just thought, I'm either going to do something terrible or I need to go and see a proper psychiatrist."
Wynne saw a psychiatrist and was prescribed tablets for his anxiety and depression, and he said he felt "much better, practically instantly".
He feels it is "really important" to speak about mental health because there is no point "pretending everything is okay".
Wynne has opened about his weight loss (PA Real Life)
Wynne says he used food as a coping mechanism in tough times (PA Real Life)Looking back now, he feels "depression and anxiety is (his) superpower", as it has made him "a better singer, better entertainer, and a better person".
"I had bad anxiety and I used to get stage fright, and I think it's made me a much better person actually," Wynne said.
"I'm much kinder, much more patient, I try and live every day to the fullest and really enjoy myself.
"I started to rebuild my life and that's where I am today - I do a show every day, I've got my own TV series in Wales, and it's great.
"If I could freeze life and keep it going like it is now, I would do that."
While Wynne addressed his mental health struggles, he knew his lifestyle and diet needed to change, too - and so he kickstarted his fitness and weight loss journey in September last year following a camping trip with some friends.
Wynne explained that he "couldn't join in" on the hikes, he was "having trouble washing in the shower", and he realised "this has got to stop".