Comedian Miranda Hart opens up about being forced into 'stillness from illness' and 'shame' from weight gain

The-51-year-old spoke further about being “forced into stillness from illness”, but did not disclose exactly what health issue she has been suffering from.

The former Call the Midwife star opened up to her 1.1 million Instagram followers about her struggles with her appearance in a video she uploaded earlier this month to promote her new memoir, “I Haven't Been Entirely Honest With You”, which is due for release later this year.

The post was captioned: "I have found it incredibly hard not to feel shame from gaining weight over the last three years. Not because of striving for an aesthetic ideal but because it doesn't represent me and who I naturally am. But life happens. Illness happens.

“And it's a great way to keep focusing on the greatest healer - self-compassion. If I lose it or not I know I am loved. Peace out."

In the video, the star was wearing a white T-shirt with the word "Proud" emblazoned on the front.

In the video, she held up her book and joked she had "lost all of the midlife weight that was lumped on". She whispered, "I haven't," before pointing to the title of her new memoir.

She went on: "But can I just say I'm actually really quite proud of the fact that I've dismantled quite a lot of shame about my weight gain, not that because I don't think bigger is beautiful, but because it isn't quite me and I feel really uncomfortable and it's one of the things I talk about in there."

The comedian rose to fame in 2009 with her self-titled sitcom series and then appeared in hugely popular BBC drama “Call The Midwife” as Chummy between 2012 and 2015. She didn’t return when for the sixth series in 2017, however, and there were reports at the time that she was suffering from ill health. She hasn’t had any major roles since then and has stepped back from the limelight, but now she’s back - and keen to explain to fans what happened to her in a new memoir.

Hart may have not have had any major TV roles for the last nine years, but she has been regularly updating her Instagram page, @realmirandahart, with details of her day-to-day life. In April, she shared a post of her waring joggers and slipper boots along with the caption: “The only clothes I now fit into in my wardrobe” along with the hashtag #menopause, hinting at a potential health issue.

Hart was sent many messages of support from her fans on her latest post. One said: “I'm in my 40s, and the last three years have been a nightmare for weight gain, no matter what I do. THANK YOU for being real on here. I loved you in "Call the Midwife" which is probably not what you're best known for, but it's where I met you. And I love you on here, because you're so real and relatable!! Keep it up!”

A second said: “Weight gain is horrendously misunderstood and people can be terribly judgemental. Learning to accept yourself is a really good place to start. Looking forward to reading the book!”

A third said: “You're beautiful inside and out! Life can happen with ferocity and we are sometimes just mostly along for the ride. Keep spreading your light and positivity and be the best you that you can be. Be gentle with yourself. You are loved and you matter.” One fan asked: “What illness have you got please?”. Hart did not respond, however. Miranda’s memoir “I Haven't Been Entirely Honest With You” is available to pre-order now on Waterstones. It costs £25.