Shona McGarty’s terror as she was forced to call in police over ‘obsessive fan’ – after stalker storyline on EastEnders
I’M A CELEBRITY star Shona McGarty is hoping her jungle stint will lead to “new beginnings” having revealed a five-year long battle with anxiety and depression.
The soap star’s battle began as a child actor in the entertainment industry and was no doubt exasperated by an incident in 2021 when she called police over a man who kept messaging her.
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Shona is currently in the jungle competing on I’m A CelebCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
She’s been part of EastEnders since 2006Credit: Eroteme
The Sun previously revealed how the former EastEnders actress, 34, was left in a state of terror after a 39-year-old man allegedly messaged her repeatedly on social media, and continued after being blocked.
When approached by The Sun at the time, he admitted to repeatedly messaging the actress because he wanted to ‘know why she’d blocked me’.
He added that he didn’t realise Shona ‘felt harassed’ and that she allegedly didn’t tell him to ‘stop messaging her’.
He was arrested on suspicion of harassment and later bailed.
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The experience was arguably not too dissimilar to Shona’s on-screen storyline at the time, with her character coming up against a stalker in EastEnders.
On the programme Shona, who played the character of Whitney Dean, faced extreme on-screen harassment from a man called Leo King – the son of her former abuser, Tony King.
At one point, Leo viciously attacked Whitney, dragging her to the ground.
However, the storyline ended when a terrified Whitney stabbed him to death after finding him in the attic of her house.
In an honest and emotional interview ahead of going into the I’m A Celeb camp, Shona told The Sun about her “horrible” and “hard” history with mental health issues.
“I’m sure a lot of people can relate. Being in an industry at such a young age, when people ask you, ‘Are you OK?’, you have to say you’re fine.
“That was the way I was taught. You just say, ‘fine’ and you fake it till you make it, kind of thing,” she added.
“But that can take its toll on you, and I think it did.”
Shona credited therapy and anxiety and depression medication as helping to get her in a better head space since.
She says her time in the jungle is “a new chapter” – and she wants to use it to raise awareness of mental health problems.
The star added: “I think it’s really important to talk about it.”
Shona’s family have similarly spoke up about how important it was to her to do things her mental health wouldn’t allow her to before.
“Anxiety and depression told her ‘no’ before… This time, she said YES,” they said over on her Instagram.
“Shona has always been open about her struggles with anxiety and depression, battles that once held her back.
“But this time, she’s won by saying yes to one of the biggest challenges of her life.
Shona and her fiance split earlier this month, before she entered the jungleCredit: Instagram/@davidirishband
Her ex is proud of her for going on the show, where she’s already jumped out of a helicopterCredit: ITV
Earlier this month Shona and her ex fiance, David Bracken, revealed that they came to a mutual decision to call off their engagement, so Shona is still facing recent heartbreak during her stint in the jungle.
The couple met through TikTok in 2023 and got engaged last year on their first anniversary.
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Though their love wasn’t meant to be, the former flames are said to have ended things on good terms, and David’s being supportive on Shona’s time in Australia.
Sharing a sweet throwback snap of them together on his Instagram stories, David penned over the top, “Let’s go girl! You got this.”
Her alleged stalker received bail on the condition that he stayed away from her and the EastEnders setCredit: Alamy
