Roxanne Pallett has credited Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Balboa movies for helping to turn her life around following her controversial stint on Celebrity Big Brother in 2018.
The former Emmerdale actress sparked national outrage after claiming that she had been punched by fellow contestant Ryan Thomas, later describing him as a "woman beater" and a "liar".
Footage of the incident showed that Thomas had not punched her and, after deciding to leave the house, she issued a tearful apology but was vilified in the press.
"Looking at 2018 it wasn't just Celebrity Big Brother," the 37-year-old told The Sun.
"I fell apart three times in the space of three months on three television shows, which was all presented as entertainment.
"That pattern should have told a lot of people watching and judging that something bigger was wrong. I watched a lot of Rocky films after that. Those films saved me. Sylvester Stallone's Rocky films are my Bible.
"Everybody finds something, whether it's music or film or art or sport or the gym, that makes them feel better. For me it was therapy, then travel, Johnny Cash's music and Sylvester Stallone's Rocky films that got me through."
Since the events of Punchgate, Pallett has moved to New York and married firefighter Jason Carrion and currently has "no plans" to return to the entertainment industry.
Neil Wilkes
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