One man’s struggle against his personal demons has been turned into an inventive and honest play.

’The Funny Thing About Depression’ has been created by local actor Lorcan O’Mahoney and professional director John Wright.

The play, which will be performed over two nights next week, is a mix of stand-up comedy and a one-man play, and is a searingly honest and up-front account of Lorcan’s own struggles with mental health.

Lorcan’s struggles grew to such an extent that he tried to take his own life, thankfully unsuccessfully.

During his recovery he began to write an online blog charting his difficulties, with the intention of raising awareness and encouraging people to be open and honest about their own struggles.

Lorcan then teamed up with his friend John, who grew up on the island before moving to begin his theatre career in London, to turn his experiences into a play.

The show is a mix of humour and honesty, which John hopes will help tackle the stigma of talking about mental health.

’The show is mainly to tell Lorcan’s story,’ said John. ’But through this production we aim to break the stigma surrounding mental health, especially amongst men.

’The blog that he wrote gained a lot of attention, largely for the way he used comedy and humour to write about his experiences, and I think that helps to break down a lot of the barriers that people face when they talk about their own mental health issues.

’Although Lorcan’s story and the subject matter are incredibly serious, we’ve tried to use humour as a way to keep the show engaging and also make it accessible for an audience.

’The show isn’t one long comedy routine, however. With Lorcan’s suicide attempt, we wanted to treat it as a serious situation, which it obviously was.

’However, it was an important period of time for Lorcan, and it was what marked the turning point in his struggle.

’What is wonderful is that he has managed to come out of the other end of this, and is able to talk about it in a very open, honest and engaging way.

’I often think people don’t know how to talk about this subject or don’t feel incredibly comfortable talking about it, but we hope this show and Lorcan’s own story will at least open up a conversation about it,’ John added.

’We also want it to be an entertaining evening at theatre, but one with a message and a heart.’

’The Funny Thing About Depression’, which has been created with backing from the Isle of Man Arts Council and Appleby, will be performed on Wednesday, July 24 and Thursday, July 25, at the South Douglas Old Friends’ Club on Finch Road, from 7.30pm.

Tickets are £12, available from ticketsignite.com/event/1514/the-funny-thing-about-depression