Prior to his tragic death, Paul Danan revealed how his struggle with addiction inspired him to start his own theatre company in Bristol. The Hollyoaks and Love Island star, whose death at the age of 46 was announced today (January 16), spoke to Bristol Live in an exclusive interview in 2021.
The Hollyoaks star’s death was announced by his management team today. In a statement, Avon and Somerset Police said: “Officers attended a property in Brislington, Bristol, at around 5.20pm yesterday where sadly a man in his 40s was declared deceased by paramedics. His family have been notified and our thoughts are with them.
“They have asked for people to respect their privacy during this incredibly difficult time. His death is not being treated as suspicious and officers are preparing a file for the coroner.”
When talking to Bristol Live in 2021, the actor, who had recently moved to the city, revealed how “no one checked” on him during his stints on reality TV shows, during which he was suffering with addiction and mental health problems.
He went on say he had “big plans” to help those experiencing the same thing through his new venture – The Morning After Theatre Company.
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“It was great times, a great show,” said Danan, reminiscing over his travels with Calum Best and Fran Cosgrave on their ITV2 spin-off show Calum, Fran and Dangerous Danan .
“We travelled across Route 66. We genuinely had to get across Santa Monica. It was epic, really cool.”
It was after Danan shot to fame on Hollyoaks that he tried his hand at reality TV – appearing on Celebrity Love Island in 2005 and again in 2006. It was there that he earned the nickname ‘Dangerous Danan.’
Back then the dating show was filmed in Fiji rather than Majorca, and the contestants were, largely, “left to their own devices” on the island.
“Love Island was so different back then,” he said. “It’s regulated now isn’t it.”
Explaining how he played a large part in the filming of the new series, Danan said: “What they’ve done is superb. I’m very proud of how they’ve managed to make it such a good show again.”
But the dark side of the reality world was one Danan knew all too well.
Two years after his spell on Celebrity Big Brother, starring alongside the likes of Trisha Paytas and Sarah Harding, Danan appeared on Jeremy Kyle in a tell-all interview about his addiction past.
He shocked the nation when he revealed he had been to rehab 17 times.
“You break your arm, people care about you,” he said. “You become ill from alcohol and drug addiction, people think ‘I don’t want to be like that.’
“I never spoke out because I was too ashamed, I really wasn’t well. Some people don’t realise how close I was to not making it through the other side.
“It’s since I’ve been talking about it and been much more open, so many people have told me ‘yeah that’s what I was like.’”
Danan continued his recovery journey in Bristol, whilst helping out at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre in the Cotswolds.
“I’ve come to Bristol because I was doing some work for myself here,” he told BristolLive. “I was helping at a treatment centre called Gladstones.
“They help me a lot with my ADHD. I only got diagnosed a couple of years ago and I needed to understand what it was.”
It was when Danan, originally from Essex, was filming Casualty that he realised Bristol was where he wanted to be.
“I filmed at the docks for months, and thought ‘wow this place is awesome.’
“I had my drama school which I opened to help kids and adults but I thought why don’t I open a theatre company for anyone with addiction problems that want to be well.”
In 2020 Danan pitched the theatre company to drug and alcohol treatment service DHI (Developing Health and Independence) who “loved” it.
DHI has been supporting his venture since with several of its peers involved in the theatre group.
It was during lockdown that Danan started up the theatre company virtually in an effort to help those suffering with mental health and addiction problems.
“Having to isolate is the worst thing for anyone, we need people and connections,” he said.
He explained how he found lockdown “very hard” but found relief in his podcast, The Morning After, where he chats, informally, to guests and friends each week.
“I thought we’ll do it on Zoom, but it’s not easy running a theatre company on Zoom.
“We’re now able to do it face-to-face which is great. I want to take it out to recovery festivals, prisons and rehabilitation centres.
“I want this to go nationwide.”
In an effort to keep the theatre company going face-to-face, Danan, who was running the group for free in an effort to ‘give back to the community’, is trying to raise money for the group through a JustGiving page.
“If people want to get involved then go to our Facebook page or message me,” he said at the time.
“Whatever talent or interest you have – you don’t even have to be good at it – just come and join us.”
And the theatre company wasn’t the only project Danan was working on.
The actor said he was writing an autobiography and is in the midst of a ‘big Netflix project,’ in which he hoped to rope in some ‘big actors.’
“I’m working on a big Netflix project called The Urge.
“As I’ve been through many rehabs – I wanted to do a black comedy show. It’s like One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Derek, Orange Is The New Black, but rehab.”