Rapper Professor Green has signed up to present a BBC Three documentary investigating his father’s suicide.
The star, real name Stephen Manderson, was 24 when his father killed himself and has written about it in several songs.
He said: “When the opportunity to front a BBC documentary on the topic of suicide presented itself I knew it would be a tough subject to tackle. Suicide is the biggest killer of men aged 20 to 45 and yet when you present people with this fact they are completely shocked.
Professor Green on stage (Niall Carson/PA)
“The truth is, suicide is still considered a taboo subject, but it shouldn’t be. Not only is this a deeply personal journey for me, but also I’ve been fortunate to meet some amazing people along the way with their own incredibly moving stories as well as those who are creating public awareness around the topic of suicide.
“If anything comes from this documentary it’s that we should not feel ashamed or embarrassed to open up and talk to those around us about our feelings, in particular young men. Collectively we need to break the stigma surrounding suicide.”
Here's what I've been up to… bbcthree's photo https://t.co/5Fg5JDeDzD
— Professor Green (@professorgreen) June 1, 2015
BBC Three controller Damian Kavanagh also announced plans for a follow-up to the Bafta Award-winning Murdered By My Boyfriend.
The show, Murdered By My Father, is the story of a 16-year-old girl murdered in a so-called 'honour killing'.
It is based on real-life testimonies and is described as 'a contemporary kind of Romeo and Juliet for a multicultural Britain'.
Mr Kavanagh said: “BBC Three has a history of making thought-provoking, hard-hitting documentaries and Stephen’s documentary on suicide and Murdered By My Father follow firmly in that vein. These are exactly the kinds of programme BBC Three should be making now and in the future.”
