EastEnders legend Shane Richie reveals he’s had anger therapy after flying into fits of rage
SHANE Richie has revealed he has had anger therapy to deal with his “fiery temper”.
The EastEnders actor, 59, admitted that he sought help after noticing he had picked up some traits from his late dad, who he describes as a violent drunk.
Speaking to Kaye Adams on her podcast, How to be 60, Shane shared: “There are a couple of traits I did have which I think I got from my dad and I went to counselling to try to sort them out.
“I had a bit of a fiery temper. If things didn’t go the way I wanted them to go I’d lose my sh*t really quickly and I knew I needed to nip that in the bud.
“I’m constantly working on that. I do think about it a lot.
“I find myself thinking ‘oh God, that’s what my dad would have done, what a kn**. Come on, snap out of it, Shane, that’s not you’.”
Shane – who is best known for playing Alfie Moon – says his dad, a bin man called Harry, would punch him as a child.
He explained: “He was a drunk, he was very abusive physically and verbally.
“He was constantly angry, he liked the drink – he was an angry drunk.
“Thankfully I’m not. I don’t drink any more. If I do, I’ll have half a lager.”
Harry passed away from cancer in 2009 when he was 65, and Shane says that despite their tumultuous relationship he was with him until the very end.
“I loathed him. We made our peace – he died in my arms.”
He added: “When he died there was something bittersweet about it because he wanted to tell me what he wanted to say and I told him what I felt about him, so we cleared the air.
“The whole thing came full circle. It was a strange time in my life. We closed the door, but there wasn’t much love lost between us.”
Shane went on to be one of the most successful actors in the UK, but Shane says his dad always struggled with his job and asked why he didn’t “get a real one”.