Blumenthal: 'I thought the TV was talking to me'

TV chef and restauranteur Heston Blumenthal said he was back in the kitchen and "thinking more clearly" as he takes on an ambassadorial role with a charity following his bipolar disorder diagnosis.

The 58-year-old said since he spoke publicly he had received thousands of messages from others living with the condition.

Blumenthal runs a number of award-winning restaurants, including the three Michelin starred The Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire.

He has become an official ambassador for Bipolar UK, having been diagnosed with the condition in 2023.

According to Bipolar UK, the mental health condition is an episodic disorder characterised by sometimes extreme changes in mood and energy which has the highest risk of suicide of any mental health condition.

"I laughed out loud after receiving a message from a woman who told me that during a manic episode she thought the TV was talking to her," Blumenthal said.

"The reason I laughed out loud was because I experienced the same thing."

Famous for his experimental dishes such as snail porridge and bacon and egg ice cream, Blumenthal said medication initially dulled his culinary imagination.

He was diagnosed after being admitted to hospital in November 2023 and said he was now more involved with the The Fat Duck than for years.

"When I first came out of hospital the medications were so strong I was zombified - I had no energy at all," he said.

"As my medications have been changed and my levels of self-confidence and self-awareness have gone up I realise my imagination and creativity is still there.

"It was at levels that were so extreme before... looking back I can remember during my manic highs I was interrupting myself with ideas."

Bipolar UK estimates more than one million adults in the UK have bipolar disorder, about 30% more than the number of people with dementia.

But it is estimated at least 500,000 people are undiagnosed.

"It's an honour to have Heston onboard as an ambassador," Simon Kitchen, chief executive of Bipolar UK, said.

"We hope that his experience will encourage more people to seek help if they are struggling with their own diagnosis or are in the process of seeking one."