Alan Carr nearly quit comedy due a debilitating stress-related condition, which left him fearing he was wetting himself on stage.
The 48-year-old Chatty Man presenter – on screen with Changing Ends this weekend (July 13) – is best known for his work as a hilarious stand-up comedian.
However, Alan spent the majority of 2015 battling a psychological condition.
Alan Carr on condition
The condition first started on the opening night of his Yap, Yap, Yap! tour. Due to nerves and anxiety, Alan began to suffer from imaginary bladder problems.
During the gig, the star had a sensation of wetting himself on stage – but he wasn’t actually doing so.
I had to run off stage.
The issue continued to happen during the tour, causing him significant mental distress.
It also led him to run off stage at various points to check he was clear.
Speaking to The Sun about the condition in 2016, Alan explained: “Nothing comes out. In Wolverhampton, I felt a ping and I thought, ‘Oh my God, I’m [bleeping] myself again!’
“I had to run off stage. I thought every laugh that I was getting was because they knew what I’d done.”
Alan admitted that the condition caused him to turn into a “wreck”.
He began wearing multiple underpants and feared drinking throughout the day.
Read more: Royal Variety viewers divided after Alan Carr’s awkward dig at Prince William
Alan added: “Sometimes I’m sitting there on Chatty Man and feel the same. It’s awful. But I didn’t want to have to quit.”
In the end, Alan started looking into alternative therapy after undergoing tests to analyse the problem.
He turned to therapies, including meditation, healing and Reiki.
“The only thing I didn’t do was hypnotism, because I didn’t want to end up walking down the street hearing the Birdy Song and start taking my clothes off,” Alan told the Belfast Telegraph.
“But when I know I’m on live telly and I’ve a busy schedule, I go to therapy, which helps.”
When is Alan on TV next?
Meanwhile, the star is set to host Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow tonight (December 23).
The show sees the comedian at the helm of five of the nation’s all-time favourite gameshows.
Watch Changing Ends on ITV1 Saturday (July 13) at 9pm.
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