Overview

• In November 2023, officers sectioned Blumenthal in Provence after he exhibited manic behaviour and his wife feared for his safety
• Medical staff diagnosed him with Type 1 bipolar disorder and he spent two weeks in a psychiatric hospital followed by six weeks of intensive clinic treatment
• He experienced racing thoughts, obsession with scientific theories and vivid hallucinations, including a perceived gun drawing that prompted his wife to seek help
• He remains heavily medicated and struggles with fear in crowds, though he has recently begun travelling solo between Marseilles Airport and London Heathrow
• His documentary Heston: My Life with Bipolar is set to air on BBC Two on 19 June, marking his first public account of the crisis