Alastair Campbell blog portrait

Alastair Campbell

Writer, communicator and strategist best known for his role as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s spokesman, press secretary and director of communications, Alastair Campbell is also a mental health campaigner and Rethink supporter.

Drawing on the experience of his own breakdown in 1986, Alastair Campbell speaks and campaigns on mental health issues, working hard to help break down the stigma around mental illness.

Posts by Alastair Campbell

Bipolar disorder doesn't just affect film stars

15 April 2011 | Posted by Alastair Campbell | 1 comment
Topics: Someone who has experienced mental illness, Stigma and discrimination
[This blog was also posted by Alastair Campbell on the Guardian's Comment is Free website. He has asked us to reproduce it here.]

In an ideal world, it would not take a film star to get the media focused on mental illness. But we don't live in an ideal world, we live in a celebrity culture where Catherine Zeta-Jones being treated for bipolar disorder can soar to the top of news websites' 'most viewed'.

Geoff Boycott’s Attitude to Depression Knocked Me For Six

30 March 2011 | Posted by Alastair Campbell | 2 comments
Topics: Someone who has experienced mental illness, Stigma and discrimination

Geoff Boycott was one of my childhood heroes. Growing up as a sports fanatic in Yorkshire, I loved his technique, his attitude, his cussedness, and the focus he brought to Yorkshire County Cricket Club - so taken was I with his brilliance that I started a Geoff Boycott fan club. However, when I read what the Great Man had to say about current England cricketer Mike Yardy, who has withdrawn from the World Cup because of depression, I was disappointed.