I'm watching a programme called CRACKING UP on BBC2. It's a documentary by Alastair Campbell about his nervous breakdown. It's strangely compelling. For those of us who have never had issues with depression or other mental issues, it is difficult to comprehend how someone is driven to such depths of helplessness.
It's interesting that Campbell openly admitted he still suffers from depression. He now regards it as 'integral' to his personality. He says he has an obsessive, addictive personality too - there's always something in his life which overwhelms everything else.
A very revealing programme which didn't necessarily make you feel sorry for Alastair Campbell, although it did help one understand him a little.
I've been watching it, very moving and his partner seems to have been a big help.
ReplyDeletefreedom to prosper
I think the whole of England has been cracking up since 1997 voting for the Labour Regime!.
ReplyDeleteAlistair Campbell must surely go down as the worst Prime Minister this country has ever had, along with Broon of course.
it makes mr depressed that such a miserable revolting person like campbell is allowed to go anywhere near government and get a nice big pay cheque.....first prescott was a bulimic then today this and brown has trouble with his sight(we already knew that).......
ReplyDeletewhat's next?
sympathy for Mao or Stalin?
they didnt really want to kill anyone.but they were bi-polar?
I wonder if Mrs Kelly was watching
ReplyDeleteMy husband suffers from serious bouts of depression so I am not lacking in sympathy for him but I do also have first hand experience of how manipulative and bullying depressives can be. This programme should be seen in that light.
I'm an alcoholic and have been for a while. Fortunately, I'm also quite respectful of those around me and have Catholic guilt which requires apology (after memory loss - frequent). He never ever mentioned how it affects his family which was the most telling part of this drivel. It was always 'impact' - rather than the opportunity cost.
ReplyDeleteI found it pathetic - I've always kinda respected Campbell but like George Michael getting involved in politics, Campbell should leave his narcissitic drivel in the 5th form common room.
Don't believe any of it - it was pants. No Hail Mary's for whatever theatrical gumph - many mae culpas for disrespecting his parents (especially mum).
The last bit was the best - 'needless to say I got really depressed after I'd resigned' - err... I think you'll find that's normal lad - ain't nuttin' about nuttin'
Compare that to the Fry flick about manic depression and get reality - that was tax payer funded masturbation.
Idiots like him get depression mixed up with being depressed - I fought like a dude to get my mum out of it - he's a spoilt little git. Just an opinion
Campbell said the worst day of his life was when he got his kit off in a Jock cop shop!!
ReplyDeletePesto just shrugged this morning when blame was attributed to him for a 10% drop in banks shares.
I'm a simple man of simple means but I know a git when I see one.
I don't mind jokes about politics - that's the game: regulated warfare. Failing to be a sage on a bit of a shandy habit and extrapolating that to conceited heights frankly has reduced all respect. I found his claim appaling. Depression is formed by poor lifestyle was the inference - pathetic little man. I'd love to see him fight my mum - i'd get a cigar and watch. Single mum, teetotaller, loving, gracious, proud, brilliant, honest, nah, I'm smoking my cigar and phoning the ambulance when she's done. Also would then try and get her to understand how the cooker works - she seems to have pre pre senile amnesia!!!
I genuinely found that offensive. The Nick Ross bit at the end made me thankful of my cathode ray TV - had it'd been plasma I'd have just lost a few quid. Dispicable idiot.
(soz about getting precious - but, well)
Pesto - a BBC Journo.....responsible for world wide stock loss...Jesus Tory bloggers are paranoid grassly knoll nutcases...what utter tosh
ReplyDeleteI don't care.
ReplyDeleteCampbell is a dishonest, bullying, lying shite.
He should be toast.
Anon - 11.49 - I didn't say worldwide. Plus sweetie - I didn't make the claim but apart from that, you're right - I've always favoured that Richard Pryor was on the grassy knoll but thought he was looking in a mirror.
ReplyDeleteChin up sunshine.
First you're "moved" by Gordon Brown's problems, then you're "moved" by Alistair Campbell's problems.
ReplyDeleteYou are Derek Draper and I claim...etc
Seriously buster - I've seen clinical depression close up and it ain't what was projected. Me ol' dear's b'day yesterday and her bezzie mate (57!) is on life support after head heamorridge. The only way to deal with the depression of a loved one is achilles heels - go for the humour, hit the base, be ruthless - Maslov hierarchy stuff - trade in alternatives. I've never felt weaker as a man.
ReplyDeleteYou've gotta sell them out in public - when they blow, you've got to reduce the situation and yet still maintain trust with the patient. Chuck love into that and ignorance & respect and all that's left is faith.
Campbell's a fu..... contact your e-mail administrator who doesn't care either..
PS - I'm chucking £4k in Barclays, hopefully, sometime this week - hurray!
I really don't care about him or the other grubby Nu Liebour lot. they've destroyed England have our Scottish mafia friends.
ReplyDeleteAs a nation we are on our knees and almost bankrupt like a third would Country.
All you Liebour lovers must be so proud.
Martin - beasto.bollsover.goodgrief.com.lux
ReplyDeleteStrangely no sympathy.
ReplyDeleteThe blood of thousands is on his hands for inflicting bullshit warmonger Bliar on us.
May the black dog give him no peace.
You back Obama and now you empathise with Campbell............
ReplyDeleteWhat is the point of your blog any more Iain?
I recommend aall viewers to go straight to guido every day as I have stared doing occasionaly popping in here to see what has been written.
Iain there are thousands of much more deserving people in the UK who do not have the BBC in theri pocket how about children with cancer, brain tumors I could go on but I fear I am wasting my keyboard on this site Obama Campbell what next Iain Cherie BLair is misunderstood?
No shortage of fools re: the blood on Campbell's hands (Iraq) and anon re was Mrs Kelly watching, you are both spot on.
ReplyDeleteI'm concerned about David Kelly and his wife and the many thousands of innocents killed and maimed by Blair's illegal invasion of Iraq, don't give a damn about Blair's pal Campbell.
Iain you will be really happy to read that BBC World service is saying that Mrs Thatcher is responsible fo the current financial crisis and IF THAT DID NOT COME FROM THE PEN OF ALISTAIR CAMPBELL I WILL EAT MY FCKIN HAT
ReplyDeleteNICE GUY IAIN ISNT HE
It's true - sorry peeps - if only you'd given the other dudes some time to sort it out. Hey, win some ya lose some.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDelete"You back Obama and now you empathise with Campbell............"
Iain isn't emphasising with Campbell from where I'm sitting, anonymous. He states:
"A very revealing programme which didn't necessarily make you feel sorry for Alastair Campbell, although it did help one understand him a little."
Fidel's feisty - mind you, so would I be with mojitos & cohibas.
ReplyDeleteWhat I said earlier about fighting your loved ones at their Achilles' heels is red card activity and should be played without thought, choice or alternative. It's the equivalent of nasty; my liver is now 40% of me - reckon I can get 50%!
To take alcoholism as depression is both facile & flippant. It's alcoholism - err.. IT'S AlCOHOLISM, err.. IT'S BLOODY ALCOHOLISM err.. etc
Pesto's lost the plot.
Ali - never got the flick eh? Never found the beauty of god? It's tough, it really is - in hope stakes I wouldn't recommend it. Just when your mind is taken for granted by your body a ghost plops you down in the middle of nowhere - it's meant to be funny, they usually kiss you.
ReplyDeleteGood luck sweetie - apparently Tuscany's reet nice this time o' year. This ain't political no more - you made a mistake and it's percy. Yeah, I dare say you'll be contained in the index - get used to it.
Off topic.
ReplyDeleteCamomile tea is apparently good for diabetics.
Iain,
ReplyDeleteI used to like your blog.
Sorry.
Sadly, for the rest of us, about 11 years too late.
ReplyDeleteThe man is a criminal. Depression, or some minimal vestiges of conscience ?
Alan Douglas
Campbell is a 100% s+++ who is obsessed with his own ego.
ReplyDeleteHe bears a great deal of responsibility for one persons death,and any sympathy for him is entirely misplaced
As weekend papers showed vis Blair and Eccleston,Campbell could not "lie straight in bed"
JH
What rot- compulsive obsessive disorder. Why doesn't Campo face facts he's an irritating lying(when he's horizontal and asleep...cough) Scots bampot. Nothing else.
ReplyDeleteWhat lovely people you seem to have attracted to your blog, Iain. It makes a McCain rally seem civilised. Glad to see that your own posts haven't descended to similar depths.
ReplyDeleteMuch against my better judgement, I was persuaded to attend a talk that Alistair Campbell gave in Oxford some years ago.
ReplyDeleteI thought it would be interesting to see if he was quite the monster that he had been portrayed by much of the press.
By the end of the evening I concluded that he wasn't a monster but he was someone who had more personality disorders than anyone I've ever seen.
He was deeply unpleasant to anyone in the audience who disagreed with him and came across as someone who had been operating out of his depth for many years.
If politicians wonder why the public hold them in such low esteem, this is the man, above all others, who they can thank.
Alastair appears to have gained a degree of self-awareness and self-knowledge as a result of his troubles, and he is to be applauded for the work he has done in promoting greater awareness of mental health issues. This is particularly important in view of the ongoing attempt by elements in the right-wing blogosphere to cast the Prime Minister as some kind of mental case. In fact the sooner we realise that we are all "psychologically flawed" to a greater or lesser degree, the better it will be for political discourse in this country.
ReplyDeleteBut what still concerns me about Campbell is the complete lack of awareness of the impact he had on others. While poor Mrs Kelly is the most obvious and oft-quoted example, I could name numerous others. There were people in the government information service, for instance, whose careers were effectively destroyed by Campbell. Does he ever wonder whether he might have driven any of them to alcohol-induced nervous breakdowns as a result of his actions?
This man deserves no sympathy. He destroyed Dr Kelly, lied to Parliament and the public and was cheerleader for the nastiest, most corrupt administration this country has had in recent times.
ReplyDeleteHe should be rotting in the Tower of London, not making tv programmes.
Is it just coincidence that some "so-called" depressives/alcoholics are manipulative compulsive liars who continually and sometimes convincingly seek sympathy and approval.
ReplyDeleteThe most important question I'd like answered is if Campbell really learned something from his experience why then did he not recognise the possible consequences of the extreme pressure he and others in government put on Dr. David Kelly that then led directly to his suicide?
ReplyDeleteI have zero sympathy or compassion for Campbell.
I didn't watch and I would find it difficult to feel sorry for the piece of human excrement that is Alastair Campbell. He lied and bullied his way through his time at the centre of power in this country. If there was any justice he would be tried for crimes against the state, found guilty and shot.
ReplyDeleteIf I were more inclined to be flippant about it, I'd say that this thread provides fascinating evidence regarding the extent of undiagnosed mental health issues - in particular, hostility, aggression and lack of empathy - flourishing within the blogosphere.
ReplyDeleteFor what it's worth, I don't think the point was to make any of you 'sorry' for people who experience depression. I think the point was that even serious and debilitating depression needn't be the end of the story for those who experience it, and that it's possible to rebuild some sort of vaguely normal life in the wake of a mental breakdown.
Some of you clearly don't have much experience of this - long may it so continue. For others, the Campbell programme was actually surprisingly honest, accurate and also inspiring.
Anyway, thanks for pointing it out, Iain - I'd missed it the first time around but am now very glad I watched it.
My heart bleeds for him.
ReplyDeleteI suffered a nervous breakdown following the death of my wife.
Unlike poor Alastair, and many other good socialists, I can't afford BUPA so I had to depend on the NHS rather than walking straight in to one of the most exclusive private hospitals in the country.
Unlike poor Alastair, I was put on an indefinite waiting list for treatment after being mis-diagnosed by an unqualified 'counselor' whose job was to assess who was sick enough to see the consultant. The psychiatric nurse who normally did this hadn't turned up for work.
After 18 months I was suicidal and I agreed to pay the NHS consultant I was waiting for to treat me as a private patient. Miraculously, an appointment became available within 4 days. Amazing what offering 180 quid an hour can achieve.
There then followed a trip to one of only two mental hospitals in the country to receive a zero star rating in its last NHS assessment.
Poor Alastair.
Did he explain what really happened to Dr David Kelly? No wonder he went round the bend.
ReplyDeleteWhat really happened to Dr David Kelly?
The truth.
Why does everyone insist on treating David Kelly like a completely blameless victim?
ReplyDeleteKelly made a conscious choice to speak to the media. He knew that this would, if detected, quite properly terminate his employment and end his career amid considerable disgrace. He made a bad decision, and then - as far as one can ever know these things - it appears that he couldn't face the consequences of that bad decision, and tragically chose to end his life rather than take responsibility for actions that quite clearly fell considerably below his professional standards.
It is also patently obvious to anyone who knows anything about political journalism in this country that if Campbell hadn't revealed Kelly's name, it would have got out anyway, and become public knowledge.
Finally, I think I must have missed the part of the programme when Campbell claimed to be perfect, or not to have made mistakes, or not to have been self-centred and (in his own word) 'terrible'. But go ahead, you lot, keep on chucking stones. It must be nice to be as blameless as all of you are.
It is also patently obvious to anyone who knows anything about political journalism in this country that if Campbell hadn't revealed Kelly's name, it would have got out anyway, and become public knowledge.
ReplyDeleteInteresting comment, Anon 12.57. Campbell has of course always denied having been personally responsible for revealing Kelly's name.
Interesting comment, Anon 12.57. Campbell has of course always denied having been personally responsible for revealing Kelly's name.
ReplyDeleteNot as interesting as all that, mind you - it's just that everyone above seemed to be assuming that Campbell had revealed it, or caused it to be revealed - so what I was trying to say was that, even if Campbell wasn't the one or hadn't been the one, the truth still would have come out.
Incidentally your comment at 10.19 was one of the more thoughtful and interesting on this thread, and your point about people in the government information service etc seems to me entirely valid.
I suffer from depression to quite a debilitating degree sometimes but, while acknowledging what's going on to those who need to know, I try not to moan and to stay polite and considerate to others whatever I may be experiencing privately. My problem is not their problem. It's between me, my brain-chemistry, and my doctor. Being depressed is no excuse for being a bastard.
ReplyDelete"Being depressed is no excuse for being a bastard."
ReplyDeleteWell said anon.
I notice that several Labour apparatchiks are now playing the victim card, including our great leader, who is now majoring in children and blindness. They will be healing the sick next.
NB as a contributor to this blog of several years, I notice a distinct glut of anonymous Labour apologists who all have this very neutral and putative factual style - as if they are doing it for a job.
anon at 12:57 says about Dr David Kelly: " it appears that he couldn't face the consequences of that bad decision"
ReplyDeleteIs that how it appears? I don't think so... It appears to be a far darker story than that...
Maybe Alastair Campbell knows what really happened to Dr David Kelly?
canvas 12.35 and 1.59
ReplyDeleteIf you have a theory about how Dr Kelly met his end, why don't you share it with the rest of us instead of posting "teaser" type comments.
It's a free country you know.
Paul, I'm sure you're clever enough to read between the lines - my question is >>> does Alastair Campbell know what REALLY happened to Dr David Kelly?
ReplyDeleteI think Tony Blair know the truth...
ReplyDeleteI think that's why he aged a decade overnight.
Depression, continental singers (as trailed continually recently by radio 4.)..is there no end to this man's dismal talents?
ReplyDeleteCharles Spencer of the Telegraph challenged Campbell at one his roadshows that he was a "dry drunk", someone who kicks one addiction only to replace it with another. Campbell responded with a face like a stunned codfish.
ReplyDeleteWhat we may never get to the bottom of is Campbell's vocation as a Grand Vizier. Maxwell. Kinnock. Blair. What's that all about?
And the question remains, how on earth did he get a high-level security clearance to work in No10 and be a key player in getting us into war with Iraq? Personality disorders have traditionally been an immediate disqualification for such clearance. Presumably he and Blair lied about this too? It would be good to see his Vetting file. FOI anyone?
ReplyDeletePersonality disorders have traditionally been an immediate disqualification for such clearance.
ReplyDeletePants. If you want to blackball someone there's a good excuse, but that's all.
I have very little sympathy. This is more of a publicity piece for the arch-liar's forthcoming "novel". Campbell lied this country into an illegal war, and participated in many outrages and smears, including against Dr Kelly with such tragic consequences. He appears a sociopath more suited to the Third Reich than a supposed democracy. In fact, I could picture him in Goebbels' jackboots, obsessed with the Fuhrer.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how Campbell gets blamed for seemingly everything.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I can't believe how so many journalists can accuse him of being a liar and a bully when they clearly use exactly the same techniques in carrying out their jobs.
I'm under no illusion when it comes to Campbell's bad side, however, I find it incomprehensible that he has become the embodiment of evil. Get real, people.
I thought it was brave of him to make this programme, since it had plenty of evidence for his detractors to feed on.
It will not affect the sale of his novel in the slightest, which will no doubt be torn apart by the press. And if it's bad, deservedly so. But I wish people could at least admit that although he's flawed (like we all are), he's human. NOT the anti-Christ.
- P
I really want to thank both Alistair and his partner. I have never met or had any dealings with either but can confirm the absolute accuracy of 'Cracking Up' This is a wonderful peice of work for the benefit of others...an unconditional work of honesty. I have just had a book published on the exact same theme but this programme said more than I ever could for whoever chooses to listen and to hear.
ReplyDeleteMark Senior