Jamie Dornan admits it was ‘strange’ to realise he was an orphan when he was almost 40
Opening up about being hit with the “awful losses” of both his parents and four of his best friends, Jamie Dornan told how it felt “strange” to think of himself as an orphan in his late-30s.
Jamie Dornan says it was “strange” to think of himself as an orphan in his late-30s.
The ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ actor, 41, was left devastated aged 15 when his mum died of cancer – and a year later four of his best friends were killed in a car crash.
He was again plunged into grief when his famed gynaecologist dad Jim Dornan passing away aged 72 in 2021 after being stricken with Covid.
Jamie told the new issue of Radio Times magazine about the impact of losing both his parents by the time he was nearly 40: “My first thought was that I was an orphan. Which is a strange thing to think in your late-30s.
“Grief is a very everyday part of my life. I’m in the shadow of it.”
He added about how he has found inner strength as a way to cope with the “awful losses”: “I’ve probably experienced more than your average and it’s strengthened me in loads of ways.
“I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone, but I do think there is something that emboldens you when you experience loss like that.
“My dad said to me when my mum died, ‘You can’t let the death of your mother be the thing that defines you.’
“And I’ve tried not to – even though internally, I think it does in lots of different ways.”
Jamie, who has been married to his 41-year-old composer wife Amelia Warner – with whom he has three children – since 2013, added coping with grief has made him shrug off any hardships in the acting business.
He said: “Choosing this for a career and dealing with all the (muck) that comes with it? If you can ride through all that, it probably makes you more resilient.
“I don’t really sweat the small stuff much because I’ve had big stuff happen that’s bad.”
