Grief hit me, like I'd lost Dad yesterday

Actor lets his emotions out on 'man camp'

- NICOLA METHVEN

Will Mellor broke down in tears as he revisited the immense grief he felt after his dad died as part of a new TV series.

The actor wept uncontrollably as he and old pal Ralf Little were shown how to deal with the pain and trauma they have experienced during their lives.

But while Will, 48, ended up feeling reborn thanks to the techniques they discovered together, closed-off Ralf realised that his tendency to lock his emotions away is not healthy.

They made their revelations at a "man camp" in Dorset. The concept originated in California and involves blokes getting in touch with their emotions to learn about "healthy masculinity".

The pair first met on the set of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps in 2001 and have been mates ever since.

In the UKTV series Will and Ralf Should Know Better, they seek out adventures and challenges that might make them feel a bit more like grown-ups.

The emotion spills over in the final episode, to be screened next week.

Will tells the Mirror: "I thought I could talk about losing my dad, talk about his memory in a positive way.

"But for some reason at that moment it just all came back and I realised there's a lot that I haven't dealt with.

"There's a lot of pain still inside." The dad of two, who starred in huge ITV hit Mr Bates vs the Post Office earlier this year, lost his dad Bill to cancer during the pandemic and wasn't able to say a proper goodbye.