FAMILY time!
Michael’s kids help him to switch off from work…
Playing out Iain’s depression plot has taken its toll on Michael, who admits: “I was pretty knackered towards the end of last year.” Thankfully, he has a young family to keep him grounded, and he loves returning to the home he shares with his actress wife Lauren Crace [who played Ronnie Mitchell’s long-lost daughter Danielle Jones in Eastenders] and their three children.
“Last year was pretty full-on and tough,” confirms Michael. “My escapism is coming home and seeing the kids’ faces, even if they are all asleep when I get in.
“I could stay in Cardiff, where the show is filmed, during the week – but I don’t think it’d be beneficial,” he adds. “All
I’d do is go back to my hotel room and dwell on things. But having kids quickly gets you out of that headspace. And my dog keeps me sane – she gives me a huge lick right across my face when I get home!”
Michael’s two-hour commute from his home in Birmingham gives him plenty of time to de-stress. And since Lauren is currently presenting a breakfast show on Free Radio, it also offers the star a chance to catch up with what she’s doing.
“The timing’s good, as I can listen to her on the way into work,” grins Michael. “Lauren leaves home at 5am as well, so we’re like passing ships most of the time. But it’s really taken her by surprise how much she’s loved doing the radio.
“We did an episode of Casualty together once, which was good,” he reminds us. “For those couple of weeks, though, I had to be very diplomatic about what music we listened to on the way into work!
I do like having that drive to myself, although it would be great to work together again in the future.”