One thing that Emmerdale was keen to emphasise when they set out to tell the story of Paddy Kirk’s (Dominic Brunt) battles with his mental health was that there was help available for people who were dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts, and that help frequently began with opening up to someone and talking.
In designing the plot, the programme collaborated with a group called Andy’s Man Club, whose Neil Waine said, “I believe that what it is doing is giving guys the concept that it is alright to communicate, you know.
Being frank and honest about how he’s feeling and how low he’s gotten is perhaps the toughest thing any guy will ever have to do.
Paddy went through this experience in Emmerdale. A Man Club was established in the Woolpack by his closest friend Marlon (Mark Charnock), and we saw a stirring all-male episode in which a diverse group of the village’s men discussed difficult or traumatic periods in their life.
Since then, the Man Club has persisted and expanded to include events like fishing excursions and other outings—less demanding but no less crucial chances for the guys engaged to connect authentically with one another.
In forthcoming episodes, Paddy will feel the need to separate from this group once things with Mandy (Lisa Riley) once again get complex.
The result will be another special Paddy episode in spring.
There are already 172 Man Club groups spread out around the nation, according to Dominic Brunt, and individuals often attend ones where they don’t know anybody.
One of the men who leads the Andy’s Man Club, which started in Halifax, said that many individuals go out of town so they may talk to total strangers.
They want to avoid being vulnerable since doing so might be humiliating for men. for a few men. Some individuals get so humiliated in these circumstances that they avoid speaking to their friends in favour of approaching someone they don’t know.
Paddy makes the decision to do this, and he is successful in finding a sympathetic group of guys who are willing to hear about his issues and give him the room he needs to think things through.
Happy that his recuperation is doing well, he forms ties with a few of his group mates and decides to return.
A cup of tea and some custard cream can fix a lot of problems, as Neil Waine famously put it.