Kavana has detailed the moment he was given a ‘lifetime ban’ from ITV’s Loose Women, saying that he has flashbacks and helps himself to a ‘slug of beer’ when he remembers
90s pop icon Kavana has disclosed that he was slapped with a ‘lifetime ban’ from Loose Women due to his conduct behind the scenes. The musician, whose birth name is Anthony Gerard Kavanagh, appeared on the daytime programme in 2007 for an interview and live performance, but confessed things went badly wrong, resulting in his permanent exclusion from the ITV talk show.
The 47-year-old artist, famous for his Top 10 smash I Can Make You Feel Good, has opened up in his latest autobiography Pop Scars about his battle with substance abuse during his career peak, admitting his recollection of that particular TV appearance is virtually non-existent.
He penned: “I can’t remember much of my ‘performance’ on Loose Women apart from the odd flashback, which every time one comes, I slug a mouthful of beer at the harrowing thought. When someone, especially your new TV and theatre agent, leaves you a voicemail at 10am saying it’s urgent, it’s usually not the best news, is it?”
Reflecting on the subsequent phone call with his representative, Kavana revealed he was informed: “I’m afraid they’re not happy with you. They have given you a lifetime ban on Loose Women. You can never go on again.”
Kavana also remembered how ITV chat show bosses were far from pleased when he vanished from the set for a quarter of an hour, leaving studio staff frantically searching for him before discovering him in a nearby pub just moments before his scheduled appearance. He further disclosed that producers were shocked when he grilled then-panellist Carol McGiffin about intimate details of her personal life, reports the Mirror.
His agent later told him: “You then had to be escorted off the premises and helped into the car by the driver, who, by the way, nearly didn’t agree to take you, due to you being so drunk. You then insisted he reroute the booking and take you all the way to Soho and drop you there!”.
Earlier this year, Kavana appeared on fellow ITV Daytime programme Lorraine, where he discussed how little understanding there was around ‘mental health’ during his rise to stardom.
Chatting to stand-in presenter Christine Lampard, Kavana said: “A memoir can be about anything, and although it does talk about fame, it’s a lot about what happens after fame to someone,” he began.
“It starts when I’m 18, and talks about my journey, my rollercoaster through 90s pop.”
Discussing that turbulent period, Kavana opened up about the “dark times” he endured. He revealed: “In those days, late 90s, there was no talk about mental health, we didn’t have a word for stuff like that, or bulimia, I’m not saying I struggled very much with that but I was very conscious with how I looked, and also I was in the closet and hiding my sexuality, I didn’t have any advice on what to say or what not to say.
“For me, because I didn’t know it at the time but I am an alcoholic, I found alcohol which was medicine. It completely took away any fear, any anxiety, it became my boyfriend, it became my medicine, and it worked for a long, long time.”
Addressing his audience, he then encouraged anyone battling with alcohol to seek assistance, stating: “Three years ago before I got sober, I would have to drink, not because I wanted to get drunk, not because I wanted to have fun, but because I needed it as important as oxygen to get through the day.
“If anyone is watching this, there is help out there. I’d say my DMs are open, I can try and give some advice but there is help. Speak to somebody, don’t be ashamed, because once I surrendered, that’s when the light got in. And I’ve been trying to write this for 10 years and it wasn’t until I got sober that it happened.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
