Heston Blumenthal has admitted that being sectioned was the ‘best thing’ that could of happened to him as he opened up about his ‘difficult’ battle with bipolar.
The chef, 58, was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for 20 days in late 2023 after his wife Melanie Ceysson expressed concerns about his wellbeing, before later being diagnosed with bipolar in November that year.
Bipolar disorder is a brain disorder which causes unusual and often sudden changes in mood and energy levels. Moods of those with bipolar disorder range from periods of extreme elation and energy (known as a manic episode) to periods of extreme somberness and lack of energy (known as a depressive episode).
And in a candid interview with BBC Breakfast’s Charlie Stayt and Naga Munchetty on Friday, Heston shared his experiences of enduring the condition that left him feeling suicidal and suffering with hallucinations.
Speaking about what led him to getting sectioned under the Mental Health Act, Heston explained: ‘It had been increasing and increasing, and eventually it was my wife that had me sectioned.
‘One of the classic symptoms of bipolar, one is you can start hallucinating things so I hallucinated a gun on the table, I was talking about suicide, so you have suicidal thoughts and the percentage of people who commit suicide is really quite high.’
Heston Blumenthal has admitted that being sectioned was the ‘best thing’ that could of happened to him as he opened up about his ‘difficult’ battle with bipolar
In a candid interview on BBC Breakfast on Friday, Heston, 58, shared his experiences of enduring the condition that left him feeling suicidal and suffering with hallucinations
He continued: ‘I also thought the TV was talking to me. This wasn’t all the time but it was getting greater and greater. Being sectioned was the best thing that happened to me.’
During the chat, Heston – who is now an official ambassador for Bipolar UK – told how it was very ‘difficult’ for his wife to get him sectioned, but he opted to ’embrace’ it in order to get better.
The experimental chef added that he was expecting to be diagnosed with bipolar as he believed the highs and lows that he was experiencing were just a ‘normal’ part of his life.
He remarked: ‘Even though the lows are low, you can have mixed moments as well. Someone asked me the other day, “If there was a button you could press to turn your bipolar off, would you press it?” No, I wouldn’t because it’s part of me.’
Heston went on to insist that he is ‘much better’ following a stay in hospital and being prescribed medication, noting he’s done a lot to ‘work on himself’.
He told the hosts: ‘Not only am I much better, I can look back before my sectioning and realise that a lot of things I did were slightly bizarre or quite extreme and they weren’t right for me and they weren’t right for the people around me..
‘I think this is a really big thing because for every person who has bipolar, there’s a big group of people around them that have to live with it which is a big thing. I thought that everything was normal.
‘Since the medication and coming out of hospital, I’ve done a lot of work on myself. I can look back and see how extreme things got.’
![The chef was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for 20 days in late 2023 after his wife Melanie Ceysson [pictured] expressed concerns about his wellbeing, before later being diagnosed](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/02/28/11/93751357-14446727-He_was_admitted_to_a_psychiatric_hospital_for_20_days_in_late_20-a-18_1740740689844.jpg)
The chef was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for 20 days in late 2023 after his wife Melanie Ceysson [pictured] expressed concerns about his wellbeing, before later being diagnosed
‘I also thought the TV was talking to me. This wasn’t all the time but it was getting greater and greater. Being sectioned was the best thing that happened to me’
It comes after Heston admitted last month that his kids weren’t shocked when he told them he was bipolar.
Heston has three children Jack, 31 – who is also a chef – Jessie and Joy with his ex-wife Zanna, whom he divorced in 2016.
He also has a six-year old child with his ex partner Stephanie Gouveia.
The owner of the Michelin-starred Fat Duck restaurant has now told The Times: ‘I was diagnosed with ADHD a few years ago and last year, when I told him about my bipolar disorder diagnosis, he just said to me, ‘Hello? You’re the last to know!’
‘I don’t think it came as a shock to any of my kids because they lived with me and have been used to me being hyper — hyper-excited and then frustrated, like a toddler. They know their dad probably better than I know myself.
His son Jack also spoke to the publication about his dad’s mental health struggles saying he was ‘proud’ of how he’s dealt with it.
Heston previously admitted that his kids weren’t shocked when he told them he was bipolar (seen with chef son Jack, 31)
‘I don’t think it came as a shock to any of my kids because they lived with me and have been used to me being hyper — hyper-excited and then frustrated, like a toddler’
He also admitted that the pair didn’t speak after a ‘falling out’ but when Jack had his daughter they reconnected.
Jack explained: ‘My daughter has been a blessing in terms of helping us to rekindle our relationship. I reached out and said, ‘Let’s get back to where we were.’ Things take time to heal but that’s what we did.’
Last July Heston was in tears as he bravely opened up about how his wife Melanie saved his life by admitting him to hospital under the Mental Health Act during his bipolar disorder battle.
He described the ordeal during an appearance on The One Show, going into detail about the ‘horrible’ situation that led to him to be diagnosed with the mental health condition last year.
Lifting the lid on what happened, he said: ‘As a chef I’ve been called everything from a culinary maverick to a genius. These ideas brought me incredible highs, but I also had some crashing lows.
‘These recurring highs to lows were getting stronger and stronger and more regular.
‘I was on a massive high and had been for several days. I was having hallucinations, feelings of paranoia, and even suicidal thoughts.’
Heston admitted: ‘It was my wife Melanie who got me the help I needed after witnessing so many extremes in my behaviour.’
Last July Heston was in tears as he bravely opened up about how his wife Melanie saved his life by admitting him to hospital under the Mental Health Act during his bipolar disorder battle
The Michelin-starred chef’s 36-year-old wife described her husband’s moods as a ‘tornado’ and worried that he was a danger to himself.
Recalling the moment she was forced to have him admitted to hospital, Melanie said: ‘It’s when I pushed the red button,’ adding that the aftermath was ‘the most horrible hours’ of her life.
Heston explained: ‘Melanie made the difficult decision to have me sectioned, which involved me being sedated.
‘There was a knock on the door, there’s a policeman, then five firemen and then a doctor with an assistant and I was like ‘What the hell is going on here?’ And then I saw the doctor pulling out this big syringe and then I woke up in hospital.’
Reflecting, he told Melanie: ‘I realise now looking back on it, it’s horrible for people that care about you. At the end of the day, you saved my life.’