Colin Firth, the star of major new TV show Lockerbie and epic films like Kingsman and Bridget Jones’s Diary, is undeniably a household name. But away from the limelight, he once battled a little-known health condition that gave him no option but to undergo surgery.
During his 20s, Colin suffered a vocal cord injury that significantly impacted his ability to communicate, making it tough for people to understand him. In a previous interview with The Guardian, the Pride and Prejudice legend stressed that such problems are severely ‘underestimated’, with his identity ‘completely stifled’ within that period.
“The psychological damage of not being able to speak properly to people – in the way they expect – is underestimated,” he said in the 2011 conversation. “I couldn’t express myself.”
In 2011, Colin played George VI in The King’s Speech – a character whose vocal problems are central to the plot of the film. While Colin had dealt with his own issues by then, he found that learning to stammer had a strange effect on his body.
At the time, he continued: “I had to learn to stammer and then play someone trying desperately not to. It put my left arm to sleep – it was very peculiar […] It was a semi-paralysis that would last for three or four days.”
According to the Express, about one in 12 young children experience a period of stammering, with two-thirds eventually overcoming it. For those who don’t, it continues to effect approximately one in every 50 adults.
The NHS outlines two main types of stammering: developmental stammering and acquired or late-onset stammering. Developmental stammering is the most common type, occurring during childhood amidst rapid speech and language skill development.
Acquired stammering, though less common, can manifest in older children or adults due to head injuries, strokes, or progressive neurological conditions. “Speech development is a complex process that involves communication between different areas of the brain, and between the brain and the muscles responsible for breathing and speaking,” NHS guidance explains.
“When every part of this system works well, the right words are spoken in the right order, with correct rhythm, pauses and emphasis. A child learning to construct simple sentences needs practice to develop the different speech areas in the brain and create the ‘wiring’ (neural pathways) needed for the different parts to work well together.
“Stammering can happen if some parts of this developing system are not co-ordinated. This can cause repetitions and stoppages, particularly when the child has lots to say, is excited, or feels under pressure.
“As the brain continues to develop, stammering may resolve or the brain can compensate, which is why many children stop stammering as they get older.” For those concerned they might have a stammer, the NHS recommends visiting a GP.
Stamma (the British Stammering Association) also has more information and support for people who stammer and parents of children with the issue.