Damian Lewis shared his view on grief after the death of his wife (Picture: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
Damian Lewis has opened up on grief after the death of his wife, Helen McCrory, in April last year after a battle with cancer.
McCrory died from breast cancer in April 2021 at the age of 52, and the Homeland star as shared his thoughts on the ‘energy’ of grieving.
He described losing his wife of 14 years, with whom he shared two children, as a ‘very fertile, very creative, raw, open time, as well as being flattening and difficult and sad’.
Lewis told The Times magazine that only people who had experienced grief would understand, explaining: ‘For four or five months, you’re physically drained. Helen was ill for four-and-a-half years.
‘They say that the first day of diagnosis of an illness that could be terminal is your first day of grief. You are in a state of semi-grief while the person is still alive because there is always the sense that something might go wrong at any point.’
He explained that the family of a terminally ill person are ‘hyper-alert’ and on a ‘war footing’ to ensure that they are doing everything to get the person better, adding: ‘Until the moment of death you’re fully engaged in living the best possible life that can be lived for the person dying, and for you as a family and for the children.
Helen McCrory and Damian Lewis had been married for 14 years (Picture: MJ Kim/Getty Images)
‘It takes an enormous amount of energy. So the collapse in death, the exhaustion, comes with that.’
Explaining why he chose the word ‘fertile’ to describe the loss of McCrory, Lewis revealed that he believes death brings new beginnings and chapters of life.
‘Along with birth, it’s the ultimate act of life, and it brings this enormous energy to it. And you carry that energy around with you,’ he explained.
‘However deep and profound your sadness, a new beginning always has an energy to it. And it is a new beginning when your wife dies and you’re left on your own. Life has changed. So, there is an energy in that.’
McCrory had been known for several roles throughout her career, including Aunt Polly in Peaky Blinders and Narcissa Malfoy in the Harry Potter series.
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She died in 2021 after battling breast cancer.