Rylan Clark has detailed the behind-the-scenes ‘trauma’ he suffered while competing on The X Factor.
The presenter originally competed on the ITV show in 2012, but has now shared the post-traumatic stress disorder he suffered after being branded a “joke act”.
In the final episode of his BBC travel series Rob And Rylan’s Grand Tour, Rylan admits that the show’s judges forced him to perform songs he wasn’t comfortable with.
He says: ‘Every week I was thrown into the lions’ den doing things I didn’t know how.
‘It’s like something internal now, when you’ve gone through that experience. Once you’ve been through that, when someone says, “Go ahead and do it,” it makes me say, “I can’t, I can’t just go and do it.”
Rylan Clark has detailed the behind-the-scenes ‘trauma’ he suffered while competing on The X Factor, as he shared how his time on the show left him with PTSD.
The presenter competed on the ITV show in 2012 and has now shared how being branded a ‘joke act’ means he ‘hates being forced to sing’.
”I feel like I’ve worked really hard to get away from that ‘damn idiot’ they perceived me to be, that character who couldn’t sing. That can really screw someone up.
Rylan added that as a result of his time on The X Factor, he now “hates being forced to sing”.
In the final episode of his travel series, Rob surprises Rylan with the opportunity to sing an opera concert, but the presenter refuses and flees the room, admitting that the experience brought back unpleasant memories of his time on the show.
He later adds: “My job on X Factor wasn’t to be the singer, so I played that role.” My job was to be the joke act, that everyone would talk about and I would be on the front page of the paper every day.
“If I have learned anything in this Grand Tour it is that there is more to me than that.
“I’m not stupid, I have more to give than just being that idiot on TV with the shiny teeth.”
In a previous episode of the series, friends Rob and Rylan got emotional talking about their painful divorces.
While enjoying a drink in Venice, Rylan admitted he “tried to end it all” amid the breakdown of his marriage, causing Rob to burst into tears.
Rylan spoke about his time on The X Factor in the final episode of his BBC travel series with Robert Rinder.
She told Rob: “I think it was the culmination of my marriage breaking down and me breaking up for the first time in 10 years.”
“Then all of a sudden I hit a pretty big obstacle instead of moving forward, I just sank.
‘It was the worst experience of my life. I just went into a downward spiral. I tried to end it, I tried to end myself.
‘I didn’t eat, I went down to ninth. I’m 6ft 4 Rob, and I look horrible.’
Rob then spoke tearfully about her own divorce, after splitting from her ex-husband, lawyer Seth Cumming, in 2018.
He said: ‘I was once very in love when I was in my early twenties, but it wasn’t reciprocated. And it never has been.
Rylan comforted his co-star as they sought solace in their shared life experiences.
He said, ‘You know what, Rob? We were here once and we’ve been through a lot.
‘What did he teach us? Nothing lasts forever unless it’s right,” as Rob wiped away tears.
Rob and Rylan previously sparked romance rumors last week by saying “their friendship is turning into love” but confirmed they are not a couple.
Speaking to MailOnline at the TV BAFTAs last Sunday, Rob explained that they shared a deep bond and said Rylan was “the real deal”.
He said: ‘We are not a couple. That’s what Rylan said, we’re like a very old couple, we row, we laugh together and we don’t have sex.’