JAMELIA has been candid about her working life and love life on the new ITV reality series Drama Queens.
The pop singer, 43, was overjoyed to get an acting role in the Channel 4 soap – but the break down in her relationship meant she had to quit.
Jamelia was left devastated after her husband walked out while she was pregnant with their child in spring 2022.
She was then left her to be a single mum to her four daughters.
Jamelia revealed: “When I was four-and-a-half months pregnant, my relationship broke down. Me and my daughters were abandoned.
“It was an unexpected life change that absolutely devastated us and changed everything.
“It was like a sledgehammer went through our lives. I thought it was the end of my life because my relationship had ended.”
She continued: “The past two years of my life have been a car crash.
“I’ve had a really difficult, traumatic time. One of the things I never, ever wanted to be was a single mum.
“I’ve had four daughters to keep afloat, keep alive. There are so many people who I thought would support me and help me and they just didn’t. I had to tap into my resilience. It’s been about surviving.”
The actress plays Dr Sharon Bailey on Hollyoaks but has now quit her role as she admitted that it is hard to juggle work and being a single mum.
She said: “Being on Hollyoaks was putting a plaster on a very deep wound. I know that I’ve not healed. I haven’t done the healing work that needs to be done.
“And I can’t do it while focussing on such a demanding job alongside the world’s most demanding job of being four people’s mum.
“I have loved being on Hollyoaks, but I know that I have been locking something away and I haven’t dealt with a lot of things.”
She added: “So I have to take that time. I need to take some time for myself. I need to stop, I need to think and I need to process and deal with all the things I haven’t dealt with.
“I’ve been in the entertainment industry for 25 years and I’ve never prioritised my mental health. I’ve always struggled through.
“You never deal with your issues, but now I know no amount of money or fame is more important than my mental health.”
Jamelia has opened up about her ordeal for new reality show Drama Queens, which airs on Wednesdays at 9pm on ITVBe and ITVX.
The series also features Corrie’s Lucy Fallon and Ellie Leach, Emmerdale star Laura Norton and Hollyoaks babe Jorgie Porter.
Each actress lets the cameras into their work lives and personal lives.
Ellie opened up about the impact her cheating ex-boyfriend had on her.
And Laura talked about her intense mum guilt going back to work on the ITV soap amid her children’s devastating and rare diagnosis.
Meanwhile, Hollyoaks is going through a lot of cuts and changes, including going down from five to three episodes a week.
There will also be a one year time jump, that will see many characters being axed.
Steph Waring (who plays Cindy Cunningham) and Ross Adams (who plays Scott Drinkwell) has been confirmed to leave the soap. But who else will be axed?
