List of people with bipolar disorder

Russell Brand, comedian and actor

Dick Cavett, television journalist

Stephen Fry, actor, comedian and writer

Larry Flynt, publisher

Demi Lovato, singer, actress and writer

This is a list of people accompanied by verifiable source associating them with bipolar disorder (formerly known as "manic depression") based on their own public statements. In the case of dead people only, individuals with a speculative or retrospective diagnosis should only be listed if they are accompanied by a source reflective of the mainstream, academic view. Individuals should not be added to this list unless the disorder is regularly and commonly mentioned in mainstream, reliable sources.

A

• Sherman Alexie, Native American poet, writer, and filmmaker.
• Alvin Ailey, American choreographer, diagnosed with bipolar disorder (then-manic depression).
• Lily Allen, English musician
• Michael Angelakos, American musician.
• Adam Ant, English musician and actor.
• Emilie Autumn, American singer and violinist.

B

• Maria Bamford, American comedian, stated in an interview with The Salt Lake Tribune that she has been diagnosed with bipolar II disorder.
• Marcel Barbeau, Canadian artist and painter.
• Maria Bello, producer, actress and writer.
• Helena Belmonte, American model.
• Max Bemis, frontman of the band Say Anything, spoke about his diagnosis in an interview with Alternative Magazine in 2014.
• Maurice Benard, actor, discussed his diagnosis on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and has since become active in promoting bipolar awareness.
• Benga, Adegbenga Adejumo known as Benga -British dubstep DJ and producer.
• A. C. Benson, English essayist, poet, author and the 28th Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.
• Davone Bess, American football player.
• Jayson Blair, American journalist formerly with The New York Times.
• Ludwig Boltzmann, Austrian physicist. Believed to have suffered bipolar disorder and known to have emotional swings, hospitalized a number of times for depression he ended his life with suicide.
• Paul Boyd, classical animator.
• L. Brent Bozell Jr., American conservative activist and writer. He wrote publicly about his experiences, suffering, and recovery from bipolar disorder.
• Russell Brand, British comedian and actor.
• Jeremy Brett, English actor, known for playing fictional detective Sherlock Holmes in the Granada TV series of the same name, diagnosed with manic depression
• Chris Brown, American singer, songwriter, rapper, dancer, and actor, Brown has been diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder.
• Frank Bruno, British boxer, was hospitalized for a short period, and as of 2005 was on lithium.
• Barney Bubbles, English graphic artist whose work encompassed graphic design and music video direction. Bubbles committed suicide when he was 41.
• Art Buchwald, humorist and Pulitzer Prize winner.
• Elbridge Ayer Burbank, Artist and painter, Burbank was diagnosed with manic depression and was treated at several different facilities during his life.

C

• Eoin Cameron, western Australian radio personality and former politician.
• Robert Campeau, Canadian financier and real estate developer.
• Cosmo Campoli , Sculptor.
• Georg Cantor, German mathematician. Cantor's recurring bouts of depression from 1884 to the end of his life have been blamed on the hostile attitude of many of his contemporaries, though some have explained these episodes as probable manifestations of a bipolar disorder.
• Quincy Carter, American football quarterback.
• Dick Cavett, comedian and television journalist.
• Eason Chan, Chinese popular music singer.
• Changjo, South Korean singer, dancer, promotional model, actor and composer.
• Akio Chiba, Japanese manga artist, committed suicide due to issues related to bipolar disorder.
• Rosemary Clooney, singer and actress.
• Kurt Cobain, American musician who was best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Kurt was diagnosed at a young age with Attention Deficit Disorder [ADD], then later with bipolar disorder.
• Neil Cole, former Australian Labor party politician. "Associate Professor Cole was the first politician in Australia or overseas to admit to having a mental illness, namely bipolar mood disorder."
• Mary Ellen Copeland, PhD, is an author, educator, mental health advocate.
• Francis Ford Coppola, American film director, producer, and screenwriter, was diagnosed by a psychiatrist as having manic depression.
• Patricia Cornwell, American crime writer.
• Robert S. Corrington, American philosopher and professor of philosophical theology. In his book Riding the Windhorse: Manic-Depressive Disorder and the Quest for Wholeness, he gives a personal account of his own experience with the condition.
• Michael Costa, former Australian Labor party politician and Treasurer of NSW. "Mr Costa said a number of state parliamentary colleagues approached him about their mental health problems after he publicly revealed his battle with bipolar disorder in 2001."
• Sean Costello, american blues musician.
• Vincent Crane, keyboard player of Atomic Rooster.
• John Curtin, 14th Prime Minister of Australia 1941–1945.

D

• Disco D, record producer and composer.
• Paul Dalio, American writer, director and composer. He made his feature directorial debut with Touched with Fire (2016), a film which drew upon his own experience with bipolar disorder.
• Ray Davies, English compositor. Davies was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and he attempted suicide.
• Adam Deacon, actor. Deacon discussed his diagnosis in a 2016 interview with Stephen Fry.
• Swadesh Deepak, Indian playwright, novelist and short-story writer.
• Gaetano Donizetti, Italian composer, Donizetti was exhibiting symptoms of syphilis and probable bipolar disorder.
• Richard Dreyfuss, actor, appeared in a BBC documentary to talk about his experience with the disorder.
• Mike Doughty, singer from alternative rock band Soul Coughing.
• Patty Duke, actress.

E

• Thomas Eagleton, United States Senator from Missouri. He was privately diagnosed with bipolar type II in 1983, eleven years after stepping down as George McGovern's running mate during the latter's presidential campaign in 1972 due to the revelation of Eagleton receiving electroconvulsive therapy in the 1960s.

F

• David Feherty, former professional golfer on the European Tour and PGA Tour.
• Carrie Fisher, actress and writer. Starred in the Star Wars films as Princess Leia.
• Zelda Fitzgerald, American socialite and novelist, and the wife of American author F. Scott Fitzgerald, diagnosed at the time as schizophrenia, but now thought likelier to be bipolar disorder.
• Helen Flanagan, English model, Actress.
• Tom Fletcher, English singer, songwriter, pianist, and guitarist, of McFly, discussed his bipolar disorder in the book Unsaid Things... Our Story.
• Larry Flynt, publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications (LFP).
• Ellen Forney, Graphic artist and cartoonist and creator of Marbles: Madness, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me.
• Connie Francis, singer.
• Jennifer Frey, journalist.
• Stephen Fry, actor, comedian, and writer. Fry was the center of the Emmy Award-winning documentary Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive in which he shares his experience being diagnosed with cyclothymic disorder and interviews a number of celebrities who are also diagnosed with bipolar-related disorders.
• Sia Furler, Australian singer, songwriter, and producer.

G

• Alan Garner, novelist, wrote about having bipolar disorder in a collection of critical and autobiographical essays.
• Paul Gascoigne, English footballer, wrote about his treatment for bipolar disorder in his second book.
• Isa Genzken, German contemporary artist.
• Mel Gibson, actor and director.
• Matthew Good, Canadian musician. He first disclosed his illness in a personal blog.
• Philip Graham, publisher and businessman.
• Graham Greene, English Novelist.

H

• Charles Haley, American football linebacker.
• Terry Hall, lead singer of The Specials.
• Halsey, indie pop singer.
• Charles Hamilton, American hip hop recording artist.
• Linda Hamilton, actress, star of the Terminator movies. Was diagnosed at the age of 40.
• Suzy Favor Hamilton, American former middle distance runner.
• Jeff Hammerbacher, data scientist, chief scientist at Cloudera.
• Anthony Hardy, English serial killer.
• Mariette Hartley, American actress, has publicly spoken about her bipolar disorder, was a founder of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
• Doug Harvey, Canadian professional ice hockey player
• Jonathan Hay, Australian rules footballer.
• Ernest Hemingway American journalist, won the Pulitzer Prize (1953) and the Nobel Prize in Literature (1954) for his novel The Old Man and the Sea, He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and insomnia in his later years, He committed suicide in 1961.
• Drewe Henley, British actor,Henley and his illness were discussed in her autobiography White Cargo.
• Kristin Hersh, musician, of rock band Throwing Muses, has spoken about her bipolar disorder.
• Derek Hess, designer and visual artist.
• Shane Hmiel, NASCAR driver.
• Abbie Hoffman, political activist, anarchist.
• Marya Hornbacher, writer.
• Byron Houston, basketball player.
• Cat Hulbert, American card player.
• Julian Huxley, British evolutionary biologist, eugenicist, and internationalist. In his wife's autobiography it seems that he had the form of bipolar disorder.

J

• Jesse Jackson, Jr., former member of the United States House of Representatives, has stated he's been diagnosed with bipolar II disorder.
• Adam Jasinski, winner of the U.S. series Big Brother 9.
• Kay Redfield Jamison, American clinical psychologist she is a professor of psychiatry and writer, who has written extensively about her personal experiences with bipolar disorder, including in An Unquiet Mind.
• Andrew Johns, Australian rugby league player. Publicly announced his condition following retirement.
• Daniel Johnston, artist.
• Lee Joon, Korean actor and musician.
• Benn Jordan, American modern jazz and electronic musician.
• Helmi Juvonen, American artist and painter, hospitalized and diagnosed with manic-depression.

K

• Krizz Kaliko, American hip hop musician.
• Chris Kanyon American professional wrestler.
• Kerry Katona, English television presenter, writer, magazine columnist, and former pop singer with girl band Atomic Kitten. BBC.
• Patrick J. Kennedy, former member of the United States House of Representatives, has spoken on his mental health issues, including diagnosed bipolar disorder.
• Morio Kita, Japanese psychiatrist, novelist, and essayist.
• Otto Klemperer, German-born American conductor and composer.
• Margot Kidder, actress.
• Cássia Kis, Brazilian actress.
• John Konrads, Australian freestyle swimmer.

L

• David LaChapelle, American commercial photographer, fine-art photographer, music video director, film director, and artist.
• Mary Lambert, American actress, singer, and writer, revealed that she had the illness in an interview with shewired.com and in her 2014 song "Secrets".
• Debra LaFave, schoolteacher who had sexual relations with minor student.
• Andrew Lange, astrophysicist and Goldberger Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California, he was awarded Balzan Prize and Dan David Prize. Suffered from mood disorder and committed suicide in a hotel in 2010.
• Yoon Ha Lee, Korean-American science fiction writer.
• Vivien Leigh, actress, most famous for her role as Scarlett O'Hara in David O. Selznick's movie "Gone With The Wind."
• Jenifer Lewis, American actress, spoke about her diagnosis on Oprah in September 2007.
• Bill Lichtenstein, print and broadcast journalist and documentary filmmaker, profiled in Time magazine, 10 October 1994.
• Arthur Lipsett, Film director.
• Bernard Loiseau, French chef, was the chef and the owner of 3-star Michelinestaurant-La Côte d'Or, Loiseau committed suicide on 24 February 2003.
• Demi Lovato, American actress, singer, and writer, revealed her illness in April 2011 in an interview with People magazine.
• Ada Lovelace, British mathematician, often regarded as the first computer programmer.
• Ris Low, Beauty pageant titleholder, Miss Singapore World 2009.

M

• Gustav Mahler, composer.
• Tina Malone, British television actress, writer, director, and producer (Brookside, Shameless). Diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder and bipolar disorder in 1998.
• Elizabeth Manley, Canadian former competitive figure skater.
• Jessica Marais, South African-Australian actress. She has stated that she has suffered bipolar episodes since she was 12 years old, suggesting that these episodes have been caused by the death of her father from a heart attack.
• Emily Martin, sinologist, anthropologist, feminist, professor at New York University; drew on her own experience with bipolar disorder to write Bipolar Expeditions: Mania and Depression in American Culture.
• Karen McCarthy, former member of the United States House of Representatives, was revealed to have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2009.
• Arthur McIntyre, Australian artist.
• Kristy McNichol, actress.
• Burgess Meredith, actor, has cyclothymia.
• Randy Meisner, American musician.
• Dimitri Mihalas, astrophysicist.
• Liz Miller, British physician, surgeon, campaigner and writer.
• Kate Millet, artist, activist and Feminist writer.
• Eric Milligan, Actor.
• Spike Milligan, comedian.
• Valdemar Schønheyder Møller, Danish painter, known for his depictions of sunlight.he suffered from bipolar episodes. In 1901, he was admitted to the psychiatric hospital in Aarhus and remained there until his death in 1905.
• Melody Moezzi, Activist, lawyer, and author of Haldol and Hyacinths: A Bipolar Life
• Seaneen Molloy, Northern Irish blogger.
• Marilyn Monroe, American actress.
• Ben Moody, guitarist, musician, formerly with Evanescence.
• Charles Mount, American artist.
• Petr Muk, Czech singer.
• John A. Mulheren, American financier, stock and option trader, and philanthropist.
• Edvard Munch, artist.
• Robert Munsch, author.
• Craig Murray, former British ambassador to Uzbekistan and political activist.

N

• Kim Novak, actress.

O

• Sinéad O'Connor, musician. She discussed her diagnosis in a Guardian interview in 2010.
• Phil Ochs, musician.
• Bill Oddie, naturalist, comedian, and television presenter.
• Craig Owens, singer for American bands Chiodos, and Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows.

P

• Skyler Page, American animator and voice actor.
• Nicola Pagett, actor. Wrote about her bipolar disorder in her autobiography Diamonds Behind My Eyes.
• Jaco Pastorius, jazz musician. "Jaco was diagnosed with this clinical bipolar condition in the fall of 1982. The events which led up to it were considered "uncontrolled and reckless" incidences."
• Jane Pauley, TV presenter and journalist. The former Today and Dateline host describes being diagnosed with bipolar disorder in her autobiography "Skywriting: A Life Out of the Blue", which she wrote in 2004, as well as on her short-lived talk show.
• Ota Pavel, Czech writer, journalist and sport reporter.
• William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, British statesman.
• Edgar Allan Poe, poet and writer, may have experienced bipolar disorder.
• Benoît Poelvoorde, Belgian comedian and actor.
• Jackson Pollock, American artist.
• Odean Pope, American jazz musician.
• Gail Porter, British TV presenter.
• Emil Post, American mathematician and logician. He is best known for his work in the field that eventually became known as computability theory. Post was bipolar and had his first attack on 1921, for the rest of his life he would have to be periodically hospitalized and given electroshock the standart treatment at that time.
• Genesis Potini, New Zealand chess player. Potini suffered from a bipolar disorder and was regularly admitted to hospital.
• Heinz Prechter, entrepreneur, community leader and philanthropist, founded the American Sunroof Company (ASC), he died from suicide on 6 July 2001, after battling intermittent bouts of bipolar disorder for most of his adult life after his death his established The Heinz C. Prechter Bipolar Research Fund for his memory.
• Charley Pride, country music artist.

R

• Gabriele Rabel, botanist, physicist.
• Mauro Ranallo, Canadian sport announcer and commentator.
• Lou Reed, musician.
• Lynn N. Rivers, member of the United States House of Representatives representing Michigan's 13th congressional district from 1995 to 2003 - first openly bipolar member of the United States Congress.
• Jason Ricci, American harmonica player and singer.
• Rene Rivkin, entrepreneur.
• Barret Robbins, former NFL Pro Bowler.
• John Ruskin, English art critic of the Victorian era, art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, prominent social thinker and philanthropist.
• Rene Russo, American actress, producer, and former model.

S

• Gary Lee Sampson, American murderer.
• Marc Schneier, founder and president of The Foundation for Ethnic Understanding.
• Robert Schumann, German composer.
• Francesco Scavullo, artist, fashion photographer. In 1981, after four nervous breakdowns Scavullo was diagnosed as manic-depressive.
• Anne Sexton, American poet won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1967 for her book Live or Die, diagnosed with bipolar disorder after many suicide attempts.
• Paul Sharits, Visual artist.
• Sidney Sheldon, producer and writer. Wrote about being a victim of bipolar disorder in his autobiography The Other Side of Me.
• Tommy Lynn Sells, American serial killer.
• Nina Simone, American singer.
• Naomi Sims, American model, businesswoman and author, widely credited as being the first African-American supermodel.
• Frank Sinatra, American singer and actor. "Being an 18-karat manic depressive, and having lived a life of violent emotional contradictions, I have an over-acute capacity for sadness as well as elation."
• Yo Yo Honey Singh, Indian rapper, music producer, singer, and film actor.
• Amy Sky, Canadian songwriter.
• Michael Slater, International Australian cricketer, forced to retire because of related symptoms.
• Tony Slattery, actor and comedian. "I rented a huge warehouse by the river Thames. I just stayed in there on my own, didn't open the mail or answer the phone for months and months and months. I was just in a pool of despair and mania." BBC Documentary
• Tim Smith, rugby league player whose career with NRL side Parramatta Eels was ended due to his bipolar condition, and pressure from the media.
• Charlene Soraia, British singer-songwriter, musician has cyclothymia.
• Britney Spears, American singer-songwriter.
• Alonzo Spellman, American football player.
• Dusty Springfield, English pop singer.
• Scott Stapp, American singer.(Creed)
• Peter Steele, frontman, Type O Negative.
• David Strickland, actor, Suddenly Susan.
• Gilbert Stuart, American painter.
• Michael Strunge , Danish Poet , killed himself by jumping from a building during mania.
• Poly Styrene (real name Marion Elliot-Said), singer.
• Stuart Sutherland, British psychologist and writer.

T

• Mackenzie Taylor, British comedian.
• Michael Thalbourne, Australian psychologist and parapsychologist.
• Abbott Handerson Thayer, American artist and painter.
• Debi Thomas, physician olympian medalist and former figure skater.
• Steven Thomas, American entrepreneur.
• Ron Thompson, American politician, former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates; has Bipolar II disorder
• Gene Tierney, actress, nominated for Academy Award for Best Actress (1945).
• Devin Townsend, musician of Strapping Young Lad and The Devin Townsend Band. He took himself off of his medication to write lyrics for Strapping Young Lad's album Alien.
• Nick Traina, singer.
• Timothy Treadwell, American environmentalist and bear enthusiast, featured in the 2005 documentary film by Werner Herzog titled Grizzly Man.
• Margaret Trudeau, Canadian celebrity and ex-wife of former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau (deceased). She now travels Canada and other countries speaking out against the stigmas on mental illness.
• Michael Tunn, Australian radio announcer and television presenter.
• Ted Turner, American media businessman. Founder of CNN.

V

• Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer and pianist. It has been suggested he had bipolar disorder, Beethoven has degradation in his manners as well as his personal appearance, which are all symptoms of a depression, which may have been caused by bipolar disorder as documented in The Key to Genius: Manic Depression and the Creative Life by D. Jablow Hershman and Julian Lieb.
• Vincent van Gogh, artist. (among numerous other hypotheses)
• Townes Van Zandt, singer-songwriter.
• Joseph Vásquez, American independent filmmaker.
• Eric Victorino, vocalist of The Limousines, author.
• Byron Vincent, writer, performer, and broadcaster.
• Mark Vonnegut, author.

W

• James Wade, English professional darts player.
• Ayelet Waldman, Israeli-American novelist and essayist, has written about her bipolar II disorder.
• David Walliams, actor, comedian, author, and charity fundraiser.
• Tom G. Warrior, lead singer and guitarist for heavy metal bands Celtic Frost, Apollyon Sun and Triptykon.
• Ruby Wax, comedian.
• Scott Weiland, musician for Stone Temple Pilots, Velvet Revolver.
• Pete Wentz, musician for Fall Out Boy.
• Delonte West, American basketball player.
• Norman Wexler, screenwriter.
• Mark Whitacre, business executive depicted in the film The Informant.
• Norbert Wiener, American mathematician, philosopher, originator of cybernetics.
• Brian Wilson, musician and founding member of The Beach Boys.
• Amy Winehouse, musician.
• Jonathan Winters, American comedian, actor, author, and artist.
• Frank Wisner, OSS officer.

Y

• Lee Thompson Young, actor.
• Bert Yancey, American professional golfer.

Z

• Catherine Zeta-Jones, actress, has bipolar II disorder.

See also

• List of people with depression
• List of people with schizophrenia

References

Resources

• Jamison, Kay Redfield (1993): Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament, New York, The Free Press. ISBN 0-02-916030-8