East 17 Star Overcomes Agoraphobia For Band’s Comeback

Tony Mortimer of East 17 spoke with The Sun about the boy band’s comeback, and his reclusive behavior after the band split nearly a decade ago. “Toward the end I hid away after gigs and when the band split up I became really agoraphobic,” he said. “If you walk out of the house everyday and hundreds of people mob you it has a mental effect. The day after we split I had nothing to get out of bed for and when I did I got hassle. So I stayed indoors up until only two and a half years ago. I put myself through therapy, got self-coaching CDs and saw a psychiatrist. I still get long times where I don’t leave the house. But I’m a stronger person now. It will be hard to go back to who I once was but I think I’ll be fine.”