Simon Gregson bravely shared how he suffered a hidden health wobble before his latest live TV appearance on Loose Women

Coronation Street star Simon Gregson bravely shared how he suffered a hidden health wobble before his latest live TV appearance as he was praised for speaking out on the subject.

The actor, who is famed for playing Steve McDonald in the ITV soap, has previously spoken about the toll being famous had on his mental health, which worsened after he became a husband and father, and dealt with hard-hitting storylines.

Simon told how he attempted therapy for the first time with the help of his father, who as a member of the police force, had an allowance for family members to get help for their mental health. However, he claimed they “didn’t know what to do with him” and he quickly gave up.

The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here 2021 runner-up also revealed how he suffered ‘up to 12 panic attacks a day’ and was forced to put in a crisis call to his boss after he struggled to make it into work for his role as the cab driver in the long-running soap.

He also explained how ITV had brought in a psychiatrist who had worked with the Royal Family to help him after he admitted to struggling with the illness, which he revealed he ‘didn’t know what it was’ before his diagnosis.

In a new appearance on Loose Women on Thursday (January 2), Simon candidly spoke about his anxiety struggled and admitted to suffering a panic attack before appearing live on the show. “I have been having them all day today. I was like, ‘I don’t think I can go on…’ It just hits you like a tonne of bricks.”

Simon also referenced the Corrie storyline in which his character began to experience depression, which he said he ‘hated’ at the time. He told the Loose Women panel: “I did a storyline where Steve had depression, I hated it. But it highlighted by problem so it was good in the end.” He joked: “Every cloud!”