{"id":100667,"date":"2023-11-06T14:31:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-06T14:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebritycovernews.com\/?p=100667"},"modified":"2023-11-06T14:31:00","modified_gmt":"2023-11-06T14:31:00","slug":"winning-c4s-celebrity-sas-who-dares-wins-left-me-in-therapy-says-gareth-gates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebritycovernews.com\/tv-movies\/winning-c4s-celebrity-sas-who-dares-wins-left-me-in-therapy-says-gareth-gates\/","title":{"rendered":"Winning C4s Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins left me in therapy says Gareth Gates"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gareth Gates is the surprise winner of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins \u2013 but reveals he needed six weeks of therapy afterwards because it brought back memories of childhood bullying.<\/p>\n

The singer, 39, was put through his paces with gruelling challenges, from crossing a 300ft ravine to enduring mock gas attacks and vicious fights. However, the toughest part for Gareth was the interrogations with the Directing Staff, which forced him to face his traumatic childhood.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had a stammer my entire life, and it was mainly lads at school that mocked me for it,\u201d explains Gareth. \u201cBut there was one boy that would sometimes hold me down and say, \u2018I\u2019m going to beat the words out of you.\u2019 That would get a rise out of the rest of the kids, so it became entertainment.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cI was five years old and it went on for about two years, so school was a very lonely place for me. Fortunately, my mum saw that something was wrong. She actually went into the school and managed to get to the bottom of it. Shortly after that, I figured out I was able to sing, and that was a big game changer for me. I could actually get words out for the first time. And more importantly for me, I gained the respect of my peers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gareth went on to compete on Pop Idol in 2002, where he came runner-up to Will Young. While he didn\u2019t win the show, Gareth was signed by Simon Cowell \u2019s record label. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne of my greatest achievements from Pop Idol was that I was able to heighten the awareness of stammering,\u201d says Gareth. \u201cAnd to give anybody who has any form of affliction, to give them hope that you can achieve everything you\u2019ve dreamed of and that you can be the person you want to be even though you have these things that hold you back.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Since Celebrity SAS aired, Gareth has received a huge number of messages on how he\u2019s \u201cinspired people to never give up\u201d \u2013 but having to talk about his speech impediment, and the bullying that went on during his childhood years, left Gareth seeking therapy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI needed to go to therapy afterwards because they tapped into it again,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019ve hidden the trauma for so long and not talked about it. I\u2019ve never let people see those scars, ever. On Pop Idol, I spoke about my speech, but I never told people the true extent of it. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s a very personal thing, and so to do it in such a public way, I had to make a decision in my head to do that.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Gareth was actually asked to do the previous season of Celebrity SAS, but after training, he had to back out two days before filming because he got Covid.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was so fortunate they asked me to do it a year later,\u201d says Gareth. \u201cBut I had to start all my training again. I do think you train as hard as you can for the physical elements of the show, but I think it\u2019s the mental resilience that gets people right through to the end. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy speech was at its worst in the camp, and I think the reason for that is because I\u2019m not great at confrontation, at being put on the spot. However, somehow, I dug deep, I managed to tap into that, and that\u2019s what got me through it.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

As tough as it got, Gareth confesses he was never going to quit the process unless he had to.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s odd, I had something in my head where I told myself the only way I would leave is if I was to become injured, and they tell me I can\u2019t go on,\u201d says Gareth. \u201cLeaving wasn\u2019t an option for me. I can\u2019t explain that, but that\u2019s how I felt.\u201d<\/p>\n

At home, Gareth has a huge support system, including his daughter Missy, who he shares with his ex-wife Suzanne Mole.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter\u2019s really, really proud of me. She loves watching the show \u2013 the whole family does,\u201d says Gareth. \u201cWe have a family WhatsApp group and every time an episode is on, we all chat on there. The amount of support my family has given me is huge, and of course, it\u2019s them who are the closest to seeing the hurt I went through as a kid. My dad had a stammer up until the age of 21, so he understands those feelings.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Gareth also has the support of a new partner, Allana Taylor, who is part of the ensemble case in West End show Grease.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s really lovely,\u201d gushes Gareth. \u201cAnd she\u2019s very understanding of my whole issue with my speech and that\u2019s the main thing. Somebody that accepts me for me \u2013 and she\u2019s perfect.\u201d<\/p>\n

The way Gareth looks after his mental health is through daily gym sessions, where he can have time alone and \u201cnot converse with anybody\u201d. The other way is through music, which is what Gareth\u2019s focusing on at the moment. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m currently on a cruise trip,\u201d he confesses. \u201cI\u2019m about to sail over to the Caribbean. I can\u2019t wait for some sun. I perform every night on the ship in the cabaret, it\u2019s a lovely gig. I\u2019ve been working on trips for sometime now and I absolutely love it. I get to bring my family and my partner onboard and my daughter loves it. <\/p>\n

\u201cThen after that I\u2019m into rehearsals for pantomime. I\u2019m the Prince in Snow White And The Seven Dwarves this year, then I go back to the Caribbean. After that, I\u2019m starring in The Best Of Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons until March. So until then, I have about four nights off.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n