"It’s unfortunate it happened to me but you can’t just let it destroy your life"

The Specials‘ frontman Terry Hall has spoken of his battle with depression after being sexually abused by a paedophile ring when he was 12-years-old.

The ska icon was speaking to comedian Richard Herring for his latest episode of the Leicester Square Theatre podcast, when he opened up about his struggles with depression and addiction ever since he was abducted and abused in the early ’70s.

“At 12 I got abducted by a paedophile ring in France and that was a real eye-opener,” said Hall. “And I can laugh about it now, but it sort of switched something in my head and it’s like I don’t have to do that and that’s when I started like not listening to anyone.”

He revealed: “I was sort of drugged up then on valium for about a year and I didn’t go to school.”

He continued: “I find it quite easy to forgive and forget. It’s like, you know, going back to my abduction, it’s like you can let that eat away at you but then well you know it’s paedophilia and it’s like part of life really.

“It’s unfortunate it happened to me but you can’t just let it destroy your life, it’s not good.”

Speaking of his addiction to valium, Hall said: “And then I fancied David Essex which was a bit wonky, but it was like, so I kind of connected the two. But then I’ve started discovering girls and you just forget about it, it’s too short.”

Hall added: “I mean I suffer from manic depression and avoided all sorts of medication for a long time, then 10 years ago I started taking Lithium and stuff and I’m still on these drugs. And it sort of helps, it sort of helps.”