Stephen Mangan shares ‘tremendous sadness’ that led to life-changing purchase

Stephen Mangan has been a staple of British TV for years, but the Green Wing star has suffered great personal tragedy.

Stephen Mangan has spoken candidly about a significant family investment made in the wake of two losses.

Love Your Weekend With Alan Titchmarsh returns this morning, Sunday, May 3, with the host welcoming actor and comedian Stephen Mangan alongside his artist sister Anita.

Despite enjoying a flourishing career, including a role in Charles Dance‘s forthcoming film The Inn At The Edge Of The World, Mangan has endured tremendous heartache in his private life.

In 1991, when he was just 22-years-old, his mother was diagnosed with colon cancer and passed away merely six months later.

Then in 2005, his father died of a brain tumour at 63-years-old, also six months after receiving his diagnosis.

“You feel so helpless when something like that happens to someone you love,” Mangan told Metro. “A lot of people live in denial and don’t want to think about what might happen because it’s depressing.

“I find being aware the clock is ticking makes being alive feel more special. You can’t go around thinking you’re going to die all the time but life is precious because there isn’t that much of it.”

He further commented: “It’s a source of tremendous sadness to me that my parents never got to meet my children. It feels wrong but what can you do? You have to get on with it.”

Following their father’s passing, Mangan and his two younger sisters Anita and Lisa combined their resources to purchase a £800,000 country house in Wiltshire.

Speaking candidly about the lavish acquisition, the star revealed to Lauren Laverne on Desert Island Discs: “I think it’s always there because we were so close as kids.

“When dad died, we bought a little place in the countryside, all three of us, that we could use and go to as a family because you no longer have a family home or a place that you can gather so we got somewhere.

“They are the people who made me, my mum, my dad and sisters. From that little family unit everything in my life has sprung.”