She was one of the few stars of the now iconic Channel 4 series Skins to actually hail from Bristol but now, after a starring role in Game of Thrones, Hannah Murray has revealed something of a bombshell about her struggles in her 20s.
The actress is set to publish her memoir, entitled Make Believe, next year, and it’s reported that in the book she will tell the story of how, in 2017, she ended up being detained under the Mental Health Act because she had fallen in with a ‘wellness programme’ that ended up being some kind of cult.
The Bristol-born actress revealed how her mental health was impacted when she was detained in 2017, and the story will form a large part of Make Believe.
Speaking about her book, she said: “The Make-Believe tells a deeply personal story that has lived inside me for many years and which it now feels vital to share.”
Publishers Hutchinson Heinemann said: “This is the story of the blurred line between what is real, and what is an illusion; what we must accept and what we wish to be true; between solid earth beneath your feet and a world where anything is possible if you only commit.
“It is about the lure of those that tell us they can save us, and the deceptive structure of organisations that promise us ‘wellness’.
“It’s about the acting world, but also about the way all of us act, hiding our vulnerabilities from everyone except the people trained to prey on them,” a spokesperson added.
Hannah was just 16 when she was cast as Cassie in the Channel 4 teen drama Skins, which was set and filmed in Bristol between 2007 and 2008. In the series, her character suffered from mental health issues too.
She went on to play Gilly in Game of Thrones and, now 35, she is reflecting on her life and career with the new memoir. Speaking to Backstage previously, Hannah explained: “I think [maintaining mental health is] something I learned a lot over the course of my career.
“My first role, I played a girl with anorexia who had suicide attempts and addiction problems, and it was heavy stuff,” she added.