David Harewood is back on our screens in Channel 4's new crime drama, Pierre. The Homeland star, 60, plays London duty solicitor Pierre Jeffreys, who unravels a web of systemic police corruption following the suspicious death of his young Black client, Michael.
© Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty IThe Birmingham-born star, who was awarded an OBE for services to drama in 2023, is best known for his roles in Homeland, The Night Manager, and Supergirl. But how much do you know about his life off-camera? Keep reading to find out all we know.
David Harewood's family life
David is married to Kirsty Handy. After many years together, the pair tied the knot in Barbados in February 2013.
"Her best quality is that she keeps me very grounded," David previously told The Guardian.
© Dave Benett/Getty Images for AudThe couple share two daughters, Maize and Raven, and live in Streatham, south London.
Opening up about the challenges of balancing fatherhood with his career, David previously told the publication: "Working away from my family is hard, but we all understand it is necessary. We all know there have to be sacrifices. The family get to come out and see me. They enjoy being in America and the Los Angeles climate, and see a very different side of life. My kids see many countries, so I look at it as a blessing rather than a curse."
© Getty ImagesDavid Harewood's candid comments on mental health
At the age of 23, after graduating from RADA, David suffered a psychotic breakdown.
Reflecting on the period, David previously told The Guardian: "I had consumed a fair amount of marijuana and was under a lot of stress; over the course of two years, I’d slowly come undone."
After intervention from "some extraordinary friends," David was sectioned under the Mental Health Act at the Whittington Hospital in north London.
© Jeff Spicer"I was 23 and I'd never heard of psychosis," said the Sherwood actor. "I was confused as to what the hell was happening. The doctors were equally unsure. At one point, I was looked at by a neurosurgeon. At another point, they thought I had schizophrenia. The jury was out for quite some time as they worked out how best to deal with me. The actual breakdown probably didn’t last very long, but I think I was suffering from the effects of psychosis for months."
David later reflected on the impact of the experience in his 2018 documentary, David Harewood: Psychosis and Me. "Having been through that, and come out the other side, I feel like nothing can harm me," he said. "I now understand exactly what happened to me. I understand that I buried that pain, and I've finally acknowledged it. I feel like that’s made me 10 stone lighter."
Pierre begins on Channel 4 on Monday 5 October at 9pm.
