James Nesbitt living with health condition that affects his looks

James Nesbitt
-Credit: (Image: ITV/Voltage TV)


James Nesbitt is living with an autoimmune condition that affects his looks. The Cold Feet star, who is delivng into his family history on ITV show DNA Journey tonight, has alopecia, which has impacted his eyebrow and beard growth.

The actor's condition came to light after he appeared on The One Show in 2021 and was flooded with comments about his unusual eyebrows. But it was revealed that he was sporting fake eyebrows applied by the hair and make-up team on his latest filming role, having just come off set.

A source close to the Irish star revealed in 2021: "James has no issue at all with having Alopecia. He's been living with it for some time and it does not affect his life in any way.

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"James has never tried to hide it while away from filming. But when he's in character, it's normal for make-up to be applied on that area where there is now no hair."

James lives with the condition called Alopecia Areata, a common but unpredictable autoimmune condition which affects two per cent of the population in the UK. It causes hair loss on the scalp, face and other areas of the body but in James's case, the condition only impacts his eyebrows and small parts of his beard.

Other well known stars who live with Alopecia Areata include documentary maker Louis Theroux, former Little Mix singer Jesy Nelson and legendary US supermodel Tyra Banks. The star has previously opened up about undergoing hair transplants, although his alopecia was not a factor in the decision.

Speaking in 2017, he said: "I've just had my last one. I went public with it. I was very happy to be open about it. I just thought, 'Come on, somebody is going to say it before I say it'.

'It was something I struggled with. And that was probably the vanity in me. But also career-wise, it had an impact. In terms of the range of leading roles I've had since then, it's probably helped."

DNA Jouney airs tonight, Wednesday October 23, on ITV1 at 9pm.