Comic Relief: Funny For Money has aired a special EastEnders episode as part of Phil Mitchell’s ongoing mental health storyline.
The five-minute episode was produced by the BBC soap and Comic Relief in order to highlight the importance of seeking help.
EastEnders viewers have seen Phil suffering with depression over the last few months, before he attempted to end his own life and was taken to a mental health unit.
Phil found it hard to adapt to his new environment, but eventually made a friend and learned to open up about his struggles. He began to engage in the therapy sessions and was later deemed ready to be discharged.
𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒑𝒂𝒈𝒆 & 𝑾𝒆𝒃𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆: 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐬.𝙞𝒏𝙛𝒐
Tonight’s exclusive Comic Relief scenes took viewers back to Phil’s time in the mental health unit, as he reluctantly made friends with another patient named Andy (played by Jake Rory).
Andy shared details about his difficult childhood, explaining that his mum had left when he was two years old and his dad had ended up in prison. After living in both children’s and foster homes, Andy became homeless at 16 years old.
“But then, I ended up in this hostel that had therapists working there from a charity,” he said. “It was like I wasn’t invisible no more.”
The conversation picked up on another day when Andy heard about an attempted suicide on the unit and revealed that he had also considered ending his life.
𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 “𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒑𝒂𝒈𝒆 & 𝑾𝒆𝒃𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆: 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠𝑛𝑒𝑤𝑠.𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑜” 𝐭𝐨 𝐮𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧-𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐞𝐬
Phil admitted he had been in a similar situation and the pair shared a touching moment as they appreciated being alive. Later, they discussed the importance of getting help when you need it.
“I thought I was gonna come in here, get a bit of a quick service. But now, I realise this is just the start,” Phil added.
The special episode was inspired by the work of a project called Brandon Centre, which is supported by Comic Relief.
“At Brandon Centre, we are hoping to offer free and in-depth therapy to people who otherwise might not receive it and hopefully that gives them a safe space to process and to understand their past, their present experiences and hopefully create a better future for themselves as well,” psychotherapist Aaron told Comic Relief host Davina McCall.
