Veteran British comedian John Cleese has revealed that he is “glad” he experienced a nervous breakdown and depression following his third divorce, saying the ordeal helped him gain clarity about life and what really matters.
The 86-year-old Monty Python star opened up about his mental health in his new documentary, John Cleese Packs It In, released on November 13. The film features intimate, previously unseen moments from Cleese’s life and career, including candid reflections on his past struggles.
Discussing his split from Alyce Faye Eichelberger, his third wife, Cleese recalled going through “two and a half, three months of a nervous breakdown with suicidal thoughts.”
“It was very unpleasant waking up in the morning,” he said. “You feel very, very depressed for the first couple of hours. And I think I’m glad it happened to me, because it gave me a much more realistic grasp of what’s important in life — because we can certainly get distracted.”
Cleese married Alyce, a psychotherapist and author, in 1992, and their marriage ended in 2008. The divorce settlement — reportedly worth $20 million (£15.5 million) — left Cleese financially strained. He later joked that the payout made his ex-wife “better off than he was.”
The comedy legend has been married four times. His previous marriages include Connie Booth, his Fawlty Towers co-star, and Barbara Trentham, an American actress. He is now happily married to Jennifer Wade, 52, who also appears in the documentary.
The 80-minute film captures Cleese on tour, performing his one-man show Last Chance to See Me Before I Die, which pokes fun at his old age, health issues, and enduring wit. Cameras follow the comedian as he travels across 16 cities in five countries, attended by a close-knit team that even indulges his well-known love of cheese.
Speaking at a London screening, Cleese joked about the brutally honest nature of the film.
“For the first time, audiences will see a different side to me — not just the dashing, devil-may-care, devastatingly handsome bon viveur, but also the decrepit, addled, nasty old geriatric that my PR team work day and night to hide,” he quipped.
The comedy icon added that the film was both “shocking and hilarious,” inviting audiences to laugh not with him — but at him.
