--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In late 2011, I watched a documentary by…" description: "\"In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry called 'The Secret Life Of The Manic Depressive.' He shared his story of bipolar disorder and depr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/611/tom-fletcher-4373_bipolar_in-late-2011-i-watched-a-documentary-by_239300.jpg" --- # In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry… ![“In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry called 'The Secret Life Of The Manic Depressive.' He shared his story of bipolar disorder and depression, and it sounded exactly like me. I just cried.” quote by Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/611/tom-fletcher-4373_bipolar_in-late-2011-i-watched-a-documentary-by_239300.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/611/tom-fletcher-4373_bipolar_in-late-2011-i-watched-a-documentary-by_239300.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/611/tom-fletcher-4373_bipolar_in-late-2011-i-watched-a-documentary-by_239300.jpg) > “In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry called 'The Secret Life Of The Manic Depressive.' He shared his story of bipolar disorder and depression, and it sounded exactly like me. I just cried.” [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing a personal story of mental illness can validate and trigger deep emotional response. **In simple terms:** Seeing similar stories can be moving. Key Takeaway Seek community and support for mental health. Themes mental health empathy validation media Mood empathetic hopeful Type inspirational reflective When to use this quote - therapy - support groups - online forums - documentary viewings Key Concepts bipolar disorder depression personal narrative Questions to Reflect On - How can you channel this empathy into help? - What steps will you take for self‑care? A Different Perspective Emotional overload may be overwhelming without support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bipolar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bipolar/) [Bipolar disorder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bipolar-disorder/) [Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) [Documentary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentary/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) ## Related quotes > [“...Catholic versus Protestant, essentially. It's that kind of fight. ... And it goes on to this day. Will we never learn? Who knows? Religion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/catholic-versus-protestant-essentially-it-s-that-kind-of-fight-and-it/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [In broadcasting, there's a lot of longevity offered to people like Griff Rhys Jones and Stephen Fry, who are polymaths more than comics. We're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-mortimer/in-broadcasting-there-s-a-lot-of-longevity-offered-to-people-like/) [Bob Mortimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-mortimer/) > [“It is remarkable that a fist-gnawingly dire England performance still has the power to shock, when in some ways this one had all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-hyde/it-is-remarkable-that-a-fist-gnawingly-dire-england-performance-still/) Marina Hyde > [ \[his healing skills\] ..lay in the ability to comfort, to comfort in the proper sense, to make strong, to fortify from The Hippopotamus ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/his-healing-skills-lay-in-the-ability-to-comfort-to-comfort-in-the-2/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“But just as we can all agree on what is red, even if we will never know if we each see it in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/but-just-as-we-can-all-agree-on-what-is-red-even-if-we-will-never/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [I don't know why I get cast in a lot of period pieces. Stephen Fry told me that I had a face for period,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mcavoy/i-don-t-know-why-i-get-cast-in-a-lot-of-period-pieces-stephen-fry/) [James McAvoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mcavoy/) > [Twitter is very impulsive and impermanent and you only have 140 characters. There is no greater 'Emperor' of Twitter than Stephen Fry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tang/twitter-is-very-impulsive-and-impermanent-and-you-only-have-140/) [David Tang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tang/) > [People expect me to be stupid. I'm not saying I'm Stephen Fry, but it is amazing the perception people have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dornan/people-expect-me-to-be-stupid-i-m-not-saying-i-m-stephen-fry-but-it/) [Jamie Dornan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dornan/) > [When I was in prison, a lot of my friends blew me away. But Stephen Fry wrote to me. It was very humbling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boy-george/when-i-was-in-prison-a-lot-of-my-friends-blew-me-away-but-stephen-fry/) [Boy George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boy-george/) > [“You have already achieved the English-Language poet's most important goal: you can read, Write and speak English well enough to understand this sentence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/you-have-already-achieved-the-english-language-poet-s-most-important/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [A naughty part of me thinks, how come Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry and Tim McInnerny have all done really good parts in a film,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robinson/a-naughty-part-of-me-thinks-how-come-hugh-laurie-stephen-fry-and-tim/) [Tony Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robinson/) > [“Certainly the most destructive vice if you like, that a person can have. More than pride, which is supposedly the number one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/certainly-the-most-destructive-vice-if-you-like-that-a-person-can/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“But as Stephen Fry has so eloquently noted, all great atrocities and genocides first begin with marginalizing then dehumanizing a specific group of people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-takei/but-as-stephen-fry-has-so-eloquently-noted-all-great-atrocities-and/) [George Takei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-takei/) > [I love Stephen Fry. His tweets are witty, poignant, and intelligent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabelle-wallis/i-love-stephen-fry-his-tweets-are-witty-poignant-and-intelligent/) [Annabelle Wallis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabelle-wallis/) > [“Things seem a little prickly between the two comics. Stephen Fry is the next player out and the two of them end up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-coren/things-seem-a-little-prickly-between-the-two-comics-stephen-fry-is/) [Victoria Coren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-coren/) ## More by Tom Fletcher > [“In years to come, people may say that the most powerful weapon in this period of the twenty-first century was not sarin gas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/in-years-to-come-people-may-say-that-the-most-powerful-weapon-in-this/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [When Giovanna was pregnant with Buzz, I was searching so much on what it's like to be a dad. If I can provide any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/when-giovanna-was-pregnant-with-buzz-i-was-searching-so-much-on-what/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I wanted to lose weight, but rather than going about it the sensible way, I pretty much stopped eating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-wanted-to-lose-weight-but-rather-than-going-about-it-the-sensible/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [We never expect to go to No 1 - though of course we always hope to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/we-never-expect-to-go-to-no-1-though-of-course-we-always-hope-to/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I think we had a really nice level of fame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-think-we-had-a-really-nice-level-of-fame/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I love being a hands on dad I can't imagine it any other way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-love-being-a-hands-on-dad-i-can-t-imagine-it-any-other-way/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [After we covered Queen's 'Don't Stop Me Now,' Brian May and Roger Taylor sent us a bottle of champagne and asked us if we'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/after-we-covered-queen-s-don-t-stop-me-now-brian-may-and-roger-taylor/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [Ever since I was a child, I've always been highly emotional. I'd feel excited one moment, then the polar opposite the next.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/ever-since-i-was-a-child-i-ve-always-been-highly-emotional-i-d-feel/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [My dad worked for Kodak and was made redundant when I was about 14. Despite this, my parents did everything they could to help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/my-dad-worked-for-kodak-and-was-made-redundant-when-i-was-about-14/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [“Benjamin Franklin put it at a time of similiar uncertainty: “those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/benjamin-franklin-put-it-at-a-time-of-similiar-uncertainty-those-who/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I always knew, deep down, that I'd love to be an author, but I don't think I really thought about trying to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-always-knew-deep-down-that-i-d-love-to-be-an-author-but-i-don-t/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [You can't help but be affected by anything negative that's written about you, even if you can shrug it off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/you-can-t-help-but-be-affected-by-anything-negative-that-s-written/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I hate the idea of parenting being this false perfect picture. It's challenging and difficult at times. I like the fact I can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-hate-the-idea-of-parenting-being-this-false-perfect-picture-it-s/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [I'm the least rock'n'roll person ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/i-m-the-least-rock-n-roll-person-ever/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) > [My nan and grandad were really important. They took me to school every day. I couldn't have gone to theatre school without them because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-fletcher/my-nan-and-grandad-were-really-important-they-took-me-to-school-every/) [Tom Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) [Explore all 112 Tom Fletcher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-fletcher/) ## More Bipolar quotes > [Sometimes labeling is only useful, like with OCD. Once you're labeled you can be treated. On other occasions labeling leads to tyranny, like with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/sometimes-labeling-is-only-useful-like-with-ocd-once-you-re-labeled/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Society takes what it wants. The artist himself does not count, because there is no actual existence for the work of art. The work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/society-takes-what-it-wants-the-artist-himself-does-not-count-because/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [It's more common than not that bipolar illness will start in the teens. One of the reasons I spend a lot of time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/it-s-more-common-than-not-that-bipolar-illness-will-start-in-the/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Every seventeen minutes in America, someone commits suicide. Mostly, I have been impressed by how little value our society puts on saving the lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/every-seventeen-minutes-in-america-someone-commits-suicide-mostly-i/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Madness is to think of too many things in succession too fast, or of one thing too exclusively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/madness-is-to-think-of-too-many-things-in-succession-too-fast-or-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Flippin up my phone, touch screen motorola. They figured I was bipolar the way I sipped that syrup and soda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riff-raff/flippin-up-my-phone-touch-screen-motorola-they-figured-i-was-bipolar/) [Riff Raff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riff-raff/) > [“Creativity is closely associated with bipolar disorder. This condition is unique . Many famous historical figures and artists have had this. Yet they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/preeti-shenoy/creativity-is-closely-associated-with-bipolar-disorder-this-condition/) [Preeti Shenoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/preeti-shenoy/) > [Ordinarily he was insane, but he had lucid moments when he was merely stupid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinrich-heine/ordinarily-he-was-insane-but-he-had-lucid-moments-when-he-was-merely/) [Heinrich Heine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinrich-heine/) > [I was hoping that I could say stuff about mental illness that maybe people didn't know. You know, speak up for bipolar disorder and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-millegan/i-was-hoping-that-i-could-say-stuff-about-mental-illness-that-maybe/) [Eric Millegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-millegan/) > [I have never gone for a diagnosis and I don't consider myself to be bipolar, but I have extreme moods. I get heightened. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-quentin/i-have-never-gone-for-a-diagnosis-and-i-don-t-consider-myself-to-be/) [Caroline Quentin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-quentin/) > [When you're depressed, you know, it's like the world has ended. Even getting out of bed takes the most massive amount of effort. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/when-you-re-depressed-you-know-it-s-like-the-world-has-ended-even/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“I thought I would inaugurate a Bipolar Pride Day. You know, with floats and parades and stuff! On the floats we would get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/i-thought-i-would-inaugurate-a-bipolar-pride-day-you-know-with-floats/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [I just always wanted to study human behavior because every psychologist that I would talk to would tell me I was bipolar, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-gates/i-just-always-wanted-to-study-human-behavior-because-every/) [Kevin Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-gates/) > [“Insomuch as the structure of this book parallels that of my own mind, it boasts about as much order and linearity as a hallucination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-moezzi/insomuch-as-the-structure-of-this-book-parallels-that-of-my-own-mind/) Melody Moezzi > [“In our family "whim-wham" is code, a defanged reference to any number of moods and psychological disorders, be they depressive, manic, or schizoaffective. Back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lovelace/in-our-family-whim-wham-is-code-a-defanged-reference-to-any-number-of/) [David Lovelace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lovelace/) [Browse all 373 Bipolar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bipolar/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry called 'The Secret Life Of The Manic Depressive.' He shared his story of bipolar disorder and depression, and it sounded exactly like me. 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