BBC Strictly results show star Alfie Boe's 'scary time' with 'really debilitating' health condition

Opera singer Alfie Boe revealed he went through a 'scary time' with his mental health following the end of his marriage. The star, who is performing on Strictly Come Dancing's results show tonight with fellow West End actor Michael Ball, split from wife Sarah in 2020 after 18 years together.

Alfie, 51, previously revealed he had attempted suicide following the divorce from his wife and that he had also been hospitalized for five weeks for depression. Speaking on BBC show Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof, he revealed that he overdosed and subsequently entered rehab.

"I got a little emotional because everyone was talking about their other halves and it hit me harder than I realised," he shared with co-star Dianne Buswell. "It's a bit weird. In 2020 I separated from my wife after being married for 18 years. We have two beautiful children but unfortunately our journey wasn't to last a lifetime.

READ MORE:Michael Ball didn't leave his home for nine months due to 'terrible' health condition

READ MORE:Kate Middleton's comment to Sophie Wessex on Remembrance Day revealed by lip reader

Read more Michael Ball didn't leave home for 9 months due to 'terrible' health condition

"Even though we are close and we're friends, it's still not the same, you know? It resulted in a foolish act of throwing some pills down my throat, because I had lost my way.

"It was just one thing after another, travelling, on the road a lot, having to say goodbye for months at a time was hard. I ended up in a rehabilitation facility for about five weeks, and it was a scary time."

Alfie expressed his desire to share his mental health struggles in order to assist others facing similar challenges. Speaking about his depression, he said: "Depression is a really debilitating thing to go through, it's not easy, you have to accept that you're not perfect, you're human and you do make mistakes.

"You have to find that inner strength to deal with it. All in all, it was a lovely marriage... We always look at it like, it wasn't a failure, it did work, we've got two beautiful children."

In an Instagram post back in November 2021, Alfie announced his split from his wife. His statement read: "After speculation about my marriage to Sarah ending, I can confirm that we have separated.

"I have nothing but love and respect for Sarah who's been an incredible partner and an amazing mother to our two beautiful children and everything is very amicable." He also addressed the gossip surrounding their separation, including allegations of him being on the dating app Raya, stating: "Other parts of the story, though, are absolute nonsense."