Britt Ekland health: Bond girl on the mental health condition that 'destroyed' her looks
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Having been born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden the star began her career in walk-on roles. But her rise to fame was largely based on her whirlwind romance with English actor and comic Peter Sellers. The pair who married only 10 days after their first date made three films together before their divorce in 1968. Yet even after Sellers instantly fell in love from a photo of the actress, Ekland struggled with her self-esteem. Even in her older age, looking back on photographs the star doesn’t recognise it as herself, a classic symptom of body dysmorphia.
The star first spoke publicly about the condition when appearing on Loose Women back in 2016.
When shown a picture of her as a small child, Ekland remarked: “I was a very fat little girl. I was fat until I was about 15.”
It was at this point that Ekland was interrupted by former Loose Women panellist Sherrie Hewson, who then named the condition, exclaiming: “That is where it is coming from! There is a thing called body dysmorphia and I think both you and I have it.”
Agreeing with Hewson, Ekland went on to explain that she felt no different to the other blonde women in Sweden at the height of her fame and “couldn’t see what all the fuss was about”.
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