'Cold Feet': New Series Lines Up Male Depression Plot For Pete Gifford

’Cold Feet’ is to tackle the topic of male depression when the classic comedy drama returns later this year. 

The revived series will see John Thomson’s character, Pete Gifford, battling chronic depression, with the storyline inspired by writer and creator Mike Bullen’s own experience with the illness. 

Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said: “I went through a depression. I couldn’t get off my couch. I want to talk about depression in men in the new series, as it is something that isn’t explored often in drama.”

Mike also admitted that working on ‘Cold Feet’ in the late 90s and early 00s actually caused some of his problems with mental health, when other shows he’d written wouldn’t live up to the show’s success. 

“I’d be asked to write something. I’d deliver it and then I’d get these disappointed responses from TV companies saying, ‘But this isn’t a ‘Cold Feet’, is it?’” he explained. 

The new eight-episode run of ‘Cold Feet’ rejoins the group of characters 13 years on from the death of Rachel Bradley (Helen Baxendale), who was killed in a car accident at the end of the original series. 

John Thomson, Fay Ripley, James Nesbitt, Robert Bathhurst and Hermione Norris are all reprising their roles as Pete, Jenny, Adam, David and Karen respectively, while they will be joined by some new faces including Ceallach Spellman as the son of Adam and Rachel. 

James recently revealed their would be a tribute to Helen’s late character in the new series, telling ITV News: “To be without her has been sad really, we just wanted to get a little tribute into her in the first episode which I hope she sees.”

‘Cold Feet’ returns to ITV later this year.

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