Susan Boyle

Posts Tagged ‘Priory Clinic’

Susan Boyle has been out and about for the first time since leaving the Priory Clinic and has told reporters: “I’m fine, thanks!” according to a report in today’s Daily Mirror.

She was out on a shopping trip with her private doctor, Sarah Lotzof,  a psychiatrist.

The producers of Britain’s Got Talent are reportedly optimistic that Susan will now be well enough to perform on the Britain’s Got Talent tour, due to start on June 12th.

One source told The Mirror: “I would be very surprised if she didn’t do it.”

Rehearsals for the concerts are scheduled to start on Monday somewhere in Central London, but the location has been kept under wraps. One source said: “I think her breakdown was because she didn’t win and didn’t understand the industry.

“She thought her career was over. But now she has been told that she still has a shot at success – and she’s raring to go. The decision’s been very much put in her hands. She’s under no pressure.”

However, I still think her breakdown had more to do with negative press reports than her not winning Britain’s Got Talent.

Susan Boyle receives an "open offer" from Simon Cowell

Susan Boyle may need to stay in the Priory Clinic for a few weeks in order to make a complete recovery, says Professor Chris Thompson, the chief medical officer of The Priory.

Whilst Professor Thompson was not speaking specifically about Susan Boyle, he made the general point to the Daily Mail that “any admission to a psychiatric hospital for a matter of days is, in my opinion, a failed admission, because either it was unnecessary in the first place or the job hasn’t been done fully.”

He emphasised that The Priory Clinic “is not a rest home and it’s not a spa. It is a psychiatric hospital”.

Professor Thompson’s words cast doubt on Susan’s family’s optimism that she would just be in the clinic for a few days.

Meanwhile, government ministers have been calling for a review of the Broadcasting Code so that vulnerable contestants can be sufficiently protected when they appear in reality TV shows.

However, it is my personal view that the negative, unwarranted and quite frankly mean spirited press reports, where they built this lovely, vulnerable lady up and then dragged her down, are what stressed her out the most. This view is shared by Amanda Holden, who speaking on CNN’s Larry King Live, said that Susan Boyle was upset by “exaggerated stories” and “falsehoods” written about her. She maintained that the show was not to blame, and that contestants that appear on the show are well looked after and that Susan “is getting the best support she could possibly be getting at the moment.”

Despite Professor Thompson’s comments, Susan’s family are still optimistic that she will bounce back quickly. Perhaps Susan would recover more quickly if she spent time in her own home, with her cat Pebbles and surrounded by the people who know and love her. I know if I leave my own cat Lucy for any length of time, I always worry about her.

Susan doesn’t have to stress that she will miss out on a career either. One of Simon Cowell’s assistants has been to visit Ms Boyle in The Priory and made her an ‘open offer’ for a record deal.

“Simon Cowell has reassured her there is a record deal there for her if she wants it. If she doesn’t want to do it that’s fine. There’s no pressure and no rush.”

So Mr Nasty has a nice side after all.

It is unlikely that Susan will be well enough to take part in the Britain’s Got Talent tour that is due to start in Birmingham on June 16th, although I am sure there will be lots of opportunities for her to perform in the future – on her own terms.

Susan Boyle to sing at the Whitehouse?

Susan Boyle has been invited to sing for Barack Obama at The Whitehouse once she has recovered from her “nervous exhaustion”, according to a report in today’s Daily Record. Mr Obama is hoping that Susan will sing at his Fourth of July party in Washington.

Susan told her family yesterday:”I’m tired and a wee bit homesick.

“But I really hope I can still live the dream.”

Susan had apparently feared that her hopes of a singing career were dashed when she failed to win the BGT final, but her brother John promised her that this was not the case.

Speaking to the Daily Record, John said: “Susan has been invited to the celebrations at the White House with the president.

“So as you can see,her dream is still very much alive. In fact, it’s only just starting.

“Susan is exhausted, that’s all there is to it. It’s no surprise – she has gone from a small town in West Lothian to being famous around the world.

“She’s been battered non-stop for the last seven weeks and it has taken its toll. But she’ll be looking forward now to the Fourth of July.”

This invitation is Susan Boyle’s second one from the Obamas. She was asked to attend a celebrity dinner in May where Barack Obama was the guest of honour, but was she was too busy with Britain’s Got Talent to attend.

Meanwhile, Susan continues to recover in the Priory. Another of  her brothers, Gerry,  has said that she is recovering well, dismissing the scare as  “an anxiety attack”.

Gerry said: “She was exhausted when we spoke on Sunday but she sounds a lot better today, a bit happier and more like herself.

“She was a wee bit anxious yesterday and a bit fatigued. She’s also a wee bit homesick and she misses her cat, Pebbles.”

Gerry also said that Susan had been worrying that finishing second in the BGT competition, and not singing for the Queen at the Royal Variety Performance, would derail her singing career before it had started.

However, Gerry told her: “This is not the end of your career – this is the start. This show has just been a launchpad.

“The world is waiting for Susan to release a record. I wonder how many established acts would love the opportunities she will have.”

“Susan has felt under fire and in those circumstances anyone could lose it for a while.

“Hopefully soon she will be able to relax and release a record so the world can enjoy her voice again. But her health and happiness come first.”

Susan’s family are hoping that she will leave the Priory soon and go home for a break. Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for TalkbackThames said that it was too early to say whether Ms Boyle would join the Britain’s Got Talent live tour which is due to start on June 12th.

“We’ll have to wait and see how she’s feeling,” she added.

Judge Piers Morgan has also been reassuring Susan that she still has a sparkling career to look forward to.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown also showed concern for Susan Boyle, speaking to Piers Morgan and Simon Cowell on Sunday evening to ask about her well being.

He said: “I hope she is OK. She is a really, really nice person.”

I am very sad to report that Susan Boyle has been admitted to a private mental health clinic in London, suffering from exhaustion.

The BBC this morning reported that she was taken voluntarily by ambulance to the clinic.

Scotland Yard has said that police officers were called to a London hotel on Sunday at 1800 BST to doctors assessing a woman under the Mental Health Act.

It is believed that Ms Boyle has been taken to the Priory Clinic, although the Priory Clinic themselves will neither confirm nor deny that she is there.

Television company talkbackThames released a statement: “Following Saturday night’s show, Susan is exhausted and emotionally drained.

“She has been seen by her private GP who supports her decision to take a few days out for rest and recovery.”

“We offer her our ongoing support and wish her a speedy recovery.”

Other media reports have stated that after the final of Britain’s Got Talent, Susan ran down the corridor shouting: “I hate this show” and that she threw a cup of water over a floor manager who tried to pacify her.

Fred O’Neil, Susan Boyle’s friend and former voice coach was interviewed on the BBC breakfast news this morning. He labelled Susan’s situation “a tragedy.

“It’s such a tragic situation, a woman who really just loves to sing, an innocent woman really, who is just caught up in this fame game,” he told the BBC presenters.

“I just hope that whatever fame that she has got out of this will eventually bring her some happiness. Obviously at the present time it is not.”

Meanwhile, Piers Morgan was interviewed on GMTV this morning. He said that Susan Boyle was “emotionally drained and exhausted” due to the huge amount of pressure she had been placed under as the show ran its course.

“Nobody has had to put up with the kind of attention Susan has had,” he said. “Nobody could have predicted it.

“It has been crazy, she has gone from anonymity to being the most downloaded woman in history.”

Piers Morgan maintained however that Susan is “essentially fine”.

“She was very tired and hasn’t been sleeping,” he added. “She has just gone away to have some time to herself and to sleep and eat, doing all the things she hasn’t been able to do in the last week.”

Whilst ITV are clear winners, with 75% of the viewing public tuning in to watch the Britain’s Got Talent final (estimates give viewing figures of between 16 and 19 million), one has to ask the question: at what price?