Darren Day has credited Robbie Williams with saving his life after he turned to him for help after suffering a relapse.
The 55-year-old singer - who was a contestant on the first ever season of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! back in 2002 - says he was given six months to live when he fell off the wagon during the Covid-19 pandemic. Darren has a documented history of alcohol and drug addiction and has been candid about his past struggles.
During a television interview this week, he revealed he secretly battled his demons again during the pandemic - and says it was 49-year-old Robbie that turned his life around. Darren says he turned to his friend for help - and Rob took swift action to get him the care he needed, packing him off to South Africa to attend a rehab clinic.
Opening up on Good Morning Britain, Darren explained: "I relapsed at the beginning of the first lockdown, so I am just coming up to three and half years sober. I owe my life to my pal Robbie Williams because I broke down to Rob and he sent me to rehab in South Africa and I was given six months to live.
"I was in an absolute state. I broke down to Rob and he said 'leave everything to me mate' and he saved me, without Rob I would not be on this planet, without a question of a doubt. And because he'd been through all of it years before he knew what to do and even now, we Facetimed four nights ago. He's just the most incredible support to me, I owe my life to him."
It’s not the first time Darren has thanked Robbie for saving his life. He first opened up about his relapse and subsequent treatment when appearing on Lorraine in August last year, explaining: “Without Rob, I would not be here. I mean not on the planet. I was just spiraling down and down, and it was very dark.
“I burst into tears on the motorway. I was drinking very heavily at the time, and other stuff, and I phoned Rob and I literally just broke down and cried like a little boy. He sent me to a rehab in South Africa for two months. I was wrongly diagnosed for 14 years and put on the wrong meds. In 2020 I was diagnosed with BPD (borderline personality disorder).”
He added at the time: “I haven’t felt like this in 25 years… I owe my life to Rob. We FaceTime three or four days a week. I love him dearly. Without him, I wouldn’t be here.”
Robbie recently addressed his own addiction past in his Netflix documentary. He told the cameras: “I did have a sense of what I was doing to myself and I didn’t care… There is a sense of, ‘It would be best if I passed away.’ I didn’t care and it would be alright. For me to change I’ve got to be dying."
Robbie, who spent his 33rd birthday in rehab, described his treatment facility, saying: "It’s a hospital. It’s not a country club… Some people can envision rehab as being like a health retreat. It’s not – you’re surrounded by other people who are completely depressed and have just f**ked up their lives." He added: “Rehab cut the circuit on the addiction… It gave me the moment to recalibrate and see if I could live."
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