Strictly star says 'it nearly killed me' as he opens up on tragic booze battle

Hollywood star Greg Wise has opened up about the struggles that came with caring for his dying sister and the impact it had on him at the time. For the final three months of her life, the formerStrictly Come Dancing star became a full-time carer for his older sister Clare who died in 2016 at the age of 51 from bone cancer.

At the time, his life turned upside down with the dad-of-one swiftly moving into his sister's flat so he could bathe her, reposition her and dose her up with strong opiates to manage the extreme care she was suffering. But the impact of becoming a full-time carer had a negative impact on the Sense and Sensibility star. On Tuesday (July 22), the 59-year-old joined Kate Garraway and Ed Balls on Good Morning Britain where he discussed the protests going on in Westminster today.

As hundreds of carers protested outside government to fight to change the lack of paid respite care available in the UK, the TV star shared his traumatising ordeal while caring for his eldest sister.

Reflecting on his time as a carer, he confessed: "I was a 24/7 carer for my sister Clare as she was dying from bone cancer. I did it for three months, it nearly killed me.

"I feel and a lot of studies have been done on carers. Carers start to mirror the people their caring for, it's called compassion fatigue, or carers fatigue, and of course, it's understandable.

"You become anxious, you become isolated, you are fearful, you can become depressed, you can start self-medicating." When Kate quizzed him to see if he battled with self-medicating during that difficult period, he confessed: "I did.

"I got into a bit of a problem with the booze. I managed to get off it, but you find yourself in a place where you are so completely alone."

It comes as hundreds of carers storm the capital to protest at the lack of paid respte care available to them. At least six million people in th eUK provide unpaid care to family and friends. In England, almost half don't get government support for much-needed time off.

As the actor shared his difficult experience in the studio, several large HGVs were spotted travelling around the capital with huge posters splashed across them for those who couldn't attend the protest due to their commitments.

Good Morning Britain airs on weekdays from 6am on ITV1 or catch up on ITVX.