Paul Danan's troubled life had more twists than the Hollyoaks soap he starred in

Paul Danan’s life tragically had more plot twists than Hollyoaks, the soap in which he originally shot to fame.

The Essex-born actor played the character Sol Patrick from 1997 to 2001, followed by appearances on Celebrity Love Island in 2005, Big Brother in 2017 and Celebrity Coach Trip in 2022.

Hollywood even came knocking, but things soon took a turn when he ended up working at a phone repair shop.

Last year, Danan - who was open about his battles with drug and alcohol addiction - pointed the finger firmly at reality TV as the reason for his oncreen work drying up.

On January 16, his death aged 46 was confirmed by his management, who shared a statement online, which read: "It is with heavy hearts that we share the tragic news of the passing of @pauldanan at just 46 years old. Known for his television presence, exceptional talent, and unwavering kindness, Paul was a beacon of light to so many.

"His untimely departure will leave irreplaceable voids in the lives of all who knew him. During this difficult time, we kindly request respect and privacy for Paul's family, friends, and colleagues. No further comments will be made at this time."

It comes months after Danan revealed that he had been rushed to hospital and ended up in the ICU with pneumonia after suffering respiratory failure due to "obsessive" vape usage.

Doctors had warned his family that he “might not make it through the night”.

The actor smoked cigarettes for many years before switching to disposable vapes, which he would sometimes “go to sleep with: for comfort.

He said after that episode, doctors tried to impress upon him that he would be forced to use an oxygen tank later in life if he didn't stop smoking.

On a number of occasions, Danan spoke frankly about his struggles with substance abuse, including last year when he appeared on The Dozen with Liam Tuffs podcast and detailed almost dying from a heroin overdose.

The number of times that Danan entered rehab eventually reached double digits.

He was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) when he was 40 and once questioned why none of the rehabilitation centres had ever thought about a possible link between that and addiction.

"I was angry that all these treatment centres I've gone to, why didn't they ever test me for it? Why didn't they help me around that?” he said during a podcast.

"Why didn't they go, 'You know what, this guy, surely there's a bit of ADHD', that maybe this is the underlying cause to this addiction and why he keeps using and why he keeps coming back to rehabs. Why? Because they're businesses and they want you to keep coming back, they want you're money. At the same time, they want to see you well."

In 2019, he appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show where he blamed reality TV for sending him on a downward spiral.

After being shown a clip of himself drunkenly fighting with Calum Best during one-off series Calum, Fran and Dangerous Danan, he said: "I should never have done any of those shows really because I wasn't well. I'm not well."

Speaking to Kyle, he described himself as a "functioning alcoholic", saying: "I could still do my work and I could still party and that.

"I would never smoke while I worked but the night before I'd have a joint or I'd learn my lines and celebrate by getting stoned."

His erratic behaviour extended to other areas of his life, including personal relationships, with him boasting of sleeping with “more than a thousand” women.

During his appearance on the Dozen podcast last year, he was asked outright by the host: "How many women have you slept with in your life?" Danan replied: "That's a good question. I don't know. [...] I think we're definitely, yeah, in the higher range. I think ... we're definitely ... more than a thousand, yeah."