His Corrie pal and dealing with his demons Michelle Keegan drank us all under the table
landing memorable roles as kind-hearted skinhead Woody in This Is England and troubled Eli in Emmerdale.
In 2011 he landed the lead role in hit Brit sci-fi drama Misfits, then won a part in 2014 movie Pride – the story of gay activists helping striking miners in 1984.
It was after breaking down own on the set that he was finally diagnosed sed bipolar.
Joe said: “On sets I’d get et the job done, fake it in front of everyone one then crawl home and collapse in mental ntal pain.
“My brain is cruel, my mind’s cruel and takes me to really dark, rk, horrible places.
“But no matter what’s going oing on in my head if I’m needed somewhere I’ll be there. I’ll crawl out of bed.
“I’ll be on time and I’ll do it, but it’s hard. When I first started Emmerdale I got so depressed my hair fell out. I didn’t know how to cope.
“It It turned out I su suffer with bipolar but wasn’t diagnosed till aft after Pride. So I’d always been bee on the wrong drugs.”
Once on the th right medication, Joe’s life was transformed. In Instead of watching TV on the sofa for hours he went running t o regul regulate his moods.
And in 2016 he joine joined one of t he bi b ggest shows on US Amaz Amazon
Prim Prime, playing Irish vampire Cas Cassidy in Pre Preacher wit with Mamma Mia! star Dominic Cooper. Though still facing dark days he says the decision to be open about his struggle helped Brassic – on camera and off.
He adds: “I just hate the typical TV version of what bipolar is. Don’t let the assumption be that because someone suffers with mental health they’re not capable of doing what a ‘ normal person’ could do.
“I’m depressed right now – I’ve been on a downer since we finished Brassic but I know I’ll come out of it and I’m still getting s**t done.
“What I want to show is people with bipolar are hard as nails. They’re doing all the s**t that you’re doing yet they’re depressed while they’re doing it.”
His role as writer meant he could influence the culture on set.
“For so long I had to hide how I felt,” he said. “I wouldn’t let anyone know and it would kill me. So on Brassic I wanted everyone to feel safe in their mental