Amanda Abbington had a painful split from actor Martin Freeman leaving her feeling worthless and ‘deeply troubled’ as close friends and family worried about her state of mind
Amanda Abbington met Martin Freeman on the set on 2000 film Men Only and their onscreen chemistry, which was applauded by critics over a number of further projects, led them to have a 16-year marriage before it all unravelled and left Amanda feeling bereft.
The couple famously starred as husband and wife Dr John Watson and Mary Morstan in the hit BBC drama Sherlock, which saw Benedict Cumberbatch play a contemporary Detective Sherlock Holmes. They cemented their relationship off-screen when they welcomed two children together, son Joe, 18, and daughter Grace, 16.
Living in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, not far from Amanda’s childhood home, theiroutwardly perfect relationship came to an end in 2016, leaving Amanda devastated and struggling with her mental health. She was left feeling bitter and “deeply troubled” by the split and friends were concerned about her feeling of worthlessness as she was in a very dark place.
Her relationship with Martin started when she fell for him on the set of Men Only, before he shot to fame playing Tim in The Office. She said of the moment she saw Martin: “I was having my make-up done and Martin walked in. Everything else just melted away. When he left I said, ‘Who is that? Please tell me he hasn’t got a girlfriend!'”
Years later, Martin’s upward trajectory in Hollywood would become the catalyst for the split, with Amanda saying that the amount of time he was spending away from home on the set of Lord of the Rings franchise, where Martin played Bilbo Baggins, and then US television series Fargo, meant that their relationship became almost impossible.
Amanda had said that the split was amicable and purely because of Martin’s work commitments but she has since admitted to crying every day and having suicidal thoughts after he had moved out. Speaking about the painful end to their relationship, Amanda said last year: “At the time, splitting up from him was the most painful thing I’d ever experienced. We still get on really well, we still really both admire each other as actors… he’s a great guy, but we just couldn’t live with each other any more.”
In a podcast last year, Amanda admitted that she hated herself during that time of her life and was a “mess” and that suicide was a “genuine option for me” as she hit rock bottom.
Amanda is currently recalling her time on Strictly Come Dancing last year, in which she has accused professional dancer Giovanni Pernice of abusive behaviour, which led to the Italian quitting the BBC dance competition ahead of the new series. Another Italian dancer, Graziano Di Prima, has also left Strictly following video of his training with former Love Island star Zara McDermott came to light, which showed that he stepped over the line with the reality star.
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