Emmerdale bosses confirm Paddy plans to take his own life as his depression takes hold

Currently in Emmerdale, Paddy is experiencing a decline in his mental health as he deals with the aftermath of his break up from Chas.

Paddy is struggling to cope with his depression.

Now, Emmerdale bosses have confirmed that Paddy will consider taking his own life as he battles with his mental illness.

Emmerdale: Paddy will consider taking his own life

Since he found out about Chas and Al’s affair, Paddy’s world has been turned upside down.

This furthered pain he was already harbouring after the loss of Grace.

Recently, he’s slowly started to feel more and more isolated.

Now, Emmerdale bosses have revealed that Paddy’s depression will increase, making him consider taking his own life.

Paddy will develop suicidal thoughts as everything starts to become too much for him.

Being reminded of Chas’ affair everyday, Paddy decides that he needs to get away.

In tonight’s episode (Thursday February 9, 2023), Paddy leaves the village without telling anybody.

He ends up staying at a local guest house as he battles with his thoughts alone.

Cutting himself off from everyone, Paddy won’t return to the village until March.

When he comes back, he says veiled goodbyes to his loved ones and leaves once more.

This time he leaves with the intention of ending his own life.

Emmerdale bosses on the importance of Paddy’s struggle

Emmerdale producer, Laura Shaw, has spoken out on the importance of Paddy’s mental illness story.

She explained: “As soon as we started discussing this story we knew that it was vital for us to get it right and that we needed to open up the conversation about male depression and suicide.

“Paddy is usually very happy-go-lucky in life, always joking and having a laugh, but what we see is that recent events have really taken their toll. Despite him being popular and having lots of friends and family around him, Paddy starts to feel increasingly lonely, isolated and overwhelmed by his feelings and this leads to him having some very dark thoughts.

“We’ve worked really closely with Samaritans and Andy’s Man Club every step of the way through this story and their incredible support and insight has helped us to shape Paddy’s journey into a true reflection of what thousands of men sadly go through every year.”

With Emmerdale working closely with Samaritans and Andy’s Man Club, Lorna Fraser – the Executive Lead for Samaritans’ Media Advisory Service – said: “Paddy’s story creates an opportunity to show others, particularly middle-aged men, however difficult times can become, it’s always possible to get help and get through, and ultimately recover.

“Depression and suicide are extremely serious topics, so we’re pleased to have seen the producers work so hard to ensure they got this story right in its telling.”

Dominic Brunt aims to ‘shine a light’ on male depression

Paddy Kirk star, Dominic Brunt has spoken about his aim for the storyline to ‘shine a light’ on mental illness within men.

He stated: “It’s a huge honour and a great responsibility to be portraying this storyline. It’s an inherent problem in today’s society that most men don’t talk enough about their problems. We bottle them up, we don’t want to bother anyone, we become embarrassed, we feel we should be strong and not show weakness.

“If this story can shine a light on the issue or make even a small change to someone’s outlook or viewpoint, then it will have been worth it.

“It’s also a privilege to be working alongside The Samaritans and Andy’s Man Club in highlighting this issue.”

For support for suicidal thoughts and mental illness, viewers can seek help from a number of charities and platforms.

NHS resources are available at Help for suicidal thoughts – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Samaritans are free to call on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org to access online resources.

Andy’s Man Club provides support for men over the age of 18:   ANDYSMANCLUB.CO.UK

Read more: Complete Emmerdale cast list 2023 – meet them all here!