Paul Danan's crippling addiction struggles from 17 rehab stints to tragic last promise

Hollyoaks actor Paul Danan was very open about his addiction to drugs and alcohol and the inquest into his death starts today after reports he slipped and fell in an apartment in Bristol

Paul Danan bravely opened up about his struggles with alcohol and drugs shortly before his tragic death - and he'd even promised a close friend he was getting sober.

The Hollyoaks actor was just 46 when he died, and was described as a "beacon of light" by his management. Early reports claimed that the star died after he 'slipped and fell' at a luxury apartment near Bristol.

Now an inquest starts today over his death. In a podcast last year, Paul told how he was living in a 'dry house' in Bristol which is believed to be the flat where he was found dead. Over the years, he had been brutally honest about his issues with addiction. The actor even came close to death after a terrifying overdose that occurred shortly after he left a rehab facility in South Africa.

Back in 2019, Paul explained that he'd sought therapy for his struggles with substance abuse and had undergone '17 stints in rehab'. On The Jeremy Kyle Show, the actor explained: "They [rehabs] do work. They're amazing. They've saved my life many times but it's maintenance and it's about sustaining that recovery and not putting anything before that recovery — even my little boy, who I love to death."

But the star sadly relapsed on a number of occasions. Speaking on The Dozen with Liam Tuffs podcast last year, he revealed he had an overdose not long after returning from a rehab stint in South Africa following his exit from Hollyoaks.

"It took a bad route, a very dark route. Drugs, I had an overdose. I came out of rehab in South Africa. The psychiatrist had put me on all these anti-psychotics. I was there for months," he said at the time. "I got back home and my parents were so proud of me. I was fat and horrible and didn't feel like myself."

He revealed he left to get cocaine but also bought heroin - which he never used before. Paul continued: "They gave me my keys and car and I detoured and got some gear, some coke. I got a bag of brown [heroin] which I'd never done before. I snorted it and shouldn't have snorted it because that's dangerous. I ended up having an overdose really bad."

Moments after he returned home to go to bed, his parents noticed something was wrong and called the ambulance. His mother found him and he 'couldn't breathe'. She heard him 'gagging on his last breath' when she came into the room but couldn't wake him up.

The Hollyoaks actor previously revealed that his struggles with drugs began after he left the soap in 2001 and moved to LA to try and make it big in Hollywood. He said last year: "You can't party and do well in Hollywood. You've got to be healthy. It was cool but I ended up getting into the wrong type of routine of using drugs."

Friend and comedian Dapper Laughs has come forward to honour his good friend Paul and even shared how the actor supported him through his own battles.

Content creator Dapper, who's real name is Daniel O'Reilly, shared a video on his Instagram page and talked about his and Paul's friendship. During the video, Dapper also shared a voice note conversation he had with the late Hollyoaks actor. In the voice note, Paul can be heard saying: "My brother, just thought I'd touch base really see how you are, how you're feeling, all that jazz. your therapist Pauly's here if you wanna have a chat. love you mate."

Dapper, who appeared in theatre show Time alongside Paul, replied, "I'm fighting a similar fight to what you've been fighting for years. The self-destructive stuff and from the point we're rehearsing I'm gonna go completely sober – no booze, nothing."

A supportive Paul then told his pal: "I'm so, so, so happy. I know, Dan, I know you're one of us. I knew it from the minute we left you were like, 'let's go and have a beer'. That's me, that's f**king me. You know, don't you think I f**king wanted to. But I don't anymore because I know I don't need it, we don't need it.

Last summer, Paul was rushed to the hospital and ended up in the ICU with pneumonia. Doctors warned his family that he 'might not make it through the night'. The actor smoked cigarettes for many years before switching to disposable vapes - which he would sometimes 'go to sleep with' for comfort.

The doctor warned Paul that he would have to use an oxygen tank later in life if he didn't stop vaping. He previously told The Sun: "I was dead — it's a miracle I'm here. I'm upstairs puffing away on my vape then suddenly I lost my breath and collapsed. My family called for an ambulance and started giving me CPR, then police arrived and took over before paramedics took me to hospital.

"I was on a machine in ICU and ended up with pneumonia. My family were warned I might not make it through the night. I'm so lucky. The doctor was so, so harsh with me. She told me, 'Paul, you don't know how serious this was and you are going to be in here for a while now, on this oxygen."

The star said that the flavours and "a YouTube video" convinced him that vaping was safer than cigarettes, adding that his ADHD had made "everything very visual" and "always thought they’d be OK."

After his death, Avon and Somerset Police said in a statement: "Officers attended a property in Brislington, Bristol, at around 5.20pm yesterday (Wednesday 15 January) where sadly a man in his 40s was declared deceased by paramedics.

"His family have been notified and our thoughts are with them. They have asked for people to respect their privacy during this incredibly difficult time," the statement read. "His death is not being treated as suspicious and officers are preparing a file for the coroner."

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