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Disabled stars reveal how they overcame their darkest hours in new ‘#Unbroken’ interview campaign for adaptive fashion label Kintsugi clothing

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Jackie Hagan

“What got me through day to day was finding my people. Finding people who were ‘broken’ and connecting with them.”  Comedian and playwright Jackie Hagan

Fashion brand Kintsugi today launches a new series of arresting videos in which the disabled community’s most iconic individuals reveal their life moments when they felt most broken.

The inclusive clothing company asked its high-profile customers to open up about when they felt most defeated by society – and how they rallied, adapted and overcame to succeed in life.

In the first of an ongoing interview project titled #Unbroken, comedian, playwright and amputee Jackie Hagan tells Kintsugi of the mental and physical difficulties she has suffered since her teens: youtu.be/ELzsFoJNS40

She explained to Kintsugi CEO Emma McClelland how “finding people who were broken and connecting with them” eased her troubles until she found her own way to function in society.

The award-winning writer, who lost her right leg after suffering from blood clots and life-threatening infections, revealed: “The moment in my life when I was at my absolute lowest, when I was most broken, was when I was a teenager going nuts.

“My dad had just died. I went to a posh university to do philosophy not knowing that I was working class. It had just never come up in my life. I was 19 and full of rage, impotence and vulnerability. So, I really lost it. It was horrible.”

The performer from Skelmersdale, said: “When I was in a psychiatric ward, I started reading poetry, then going to workshops and performing at open mikes. I just kept performing until someone offered me a commission to do a solo show. I got into the career that I’m in now by going nuts.

“I think what got me through day to day was, bit by bit, finding my people. Finding people who were broken and connecting with them. Life is about all the nice bits of people being themselves. I love people with ticks or stutters. People being themselves is brilliant. That’s when you can really connect and engage.

“The idea of perfection is really dangerous. It means people’s needs get pushed so far down because they’re trying to be this default wonderful human. The opposite of perfection in people, is people being honest, which is truth and beauty.”

Reflecting on her proudest moment, she recalled: “When I had my leg off, I really made a thing of it. You’re supposed to be like, ‘Oh God, everyone is going to judge me on this because it is so ugly,’ and it is ugly. It has got what looks like a mouth on it. So, I drew two eyes on it and henceforth came stump puppetry.”

Jackie, who now lives among Manchester’s student population in Fallowfield, performs at Manchester’s Lowry Theatre later in March (27th). Her ‘This Is Not a Safe Space’ tour has been met with critical acclaim. She became an ambassador for Kintsugi after the adaptive apparel label asked her to kick off its disability-conscious video series, in her inimitable style.

Manchester-based Kintsugi will follow Hagan’s interview by releasing similar conversations with other well-known disability activists including five times Paralympic gold medallist Hannah Cockcroft and politician Hannah Barnham-Brown.

Kintsugi’s CEO Emma McClelland said: “We are delighted to be bringing these conversations and issues into the mainstream. These are successful women who have broken the mould and want to talk about disability and inclusivity, and help others confront similar situations to theirs.

“When faced with adversity and a sense of ‘being broken’, they revitalised themselves to achieve greater triumphs that wouldn’t otherwise have happened.

“This is the spirit of the Kintsugi Clothing brand and the Japanese art form from which it takes its name. Kintsugi offers designer clothing, suitable for all women, adapted through small but important details. At that point beautiful clothes become accessible to disabled women and enhance the lives they lead.”

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