‘I’m utterly ashamed’: Celebrity hairdresser Nicky Clarke speaks out on past heroin struggles

Nigel told Clarke that he ‘doesn’t understand’ how somebody so ‘ambitious and bright’ could ‘end up on heroin’.

Clarke responded: “It was a very long time ago, and a very short period.

“I’m utterly ashamed I went down that road. I think it was just the people around me and it was just that thing.

“It wasn’t a whole junkie thing. When it came out, by accident, it was almost a thought of, ‘I don’t want to be the poster boy for this’.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

• BBC The Repair Shop expert shares reason they almost turned down TV role after major career hurdle
• Vinnie Jones shares candid love life admission after finding love again 5 years after death of wife Tanya
• Bridgerton star flooded with support after sharing footage of rock-climbing fall and 'broken arm'

“It was 35 years ago.”

Nigel waded in on the discussion to comment how Clarke’s case shows that people who are ‘very successful’ still have ‘ups and downs’ in their life.

“Some rock bottoms are when the Porsche has to go”, he said.

“Mine was not that.”

Clarke has styled some of the world’s most iconic figures including Princess Diana and Princess Kate.

He came from humble beginnings before embarking on a successful career in hairdressing, and he spoke to Nigel about how ‘starting from the bottom’ benefited his life.

“I was given really good advice, ‘start at the bottom and go to the best place you can and sweep the floor’”, he said.

Asked whether he was the ‘first celebrity hairdresser’, he spoke on how the phrase was first coined.

“When it was coined, it was referring to the celebrities, not me”, he said.

“I think it kind of changed afterwards. A lot of hairdressers liked the idea they were now celebrities.”