‘I’ve made some terrible decisions in my life’: Helen George on life, loss and the ‘dirty secret’ that helps her through difficult times

Helen George is well known for her role as the beloved Trixie Franklin in the smash hit BBC series Call The Midwife.

With the role thrusting her into the spotlight, fans have been interested in the actress's life off screen. Helen has been very candid about life as a single parent since she split with fellow Call The Midwife actor Jack Ashton, with whom she shares two daughters.

The star has also experienced public heartbreak and loss, recently offering insight into her breakup with businessman Dan Innes months after they moved in together, and the devastating loss of a previous boyfriend to leukaemia, not long after they began dating.

After experiencing so much turbulence in her personal life, Helen has now revealed the one major coping mechanism she uses to help her during challenging times, that she kept secret for many years.

This includes delving into spirituality and mysticism, and using runes, crystals and tarot readings to find comfort and direction.

"I’ve definitely experienced things I can’t explain – particularly from tarot," Helen tells the iPaper. She adds, "I’ve had experiences with mediums where I’ve been given very compelling and intricate readings about my life and heritage, and where people I have known have come and described themselves. It’s fascinating."

Her interest in all things mystical is now out in the open, and she shares her "dirty little secret" with followers on the Mystic Mates podcast she hosts with fellow West End actor, Yvette Robinson.

Having explored the spiritual world together for 20 years, Helen says, "We’ve always discussed it privately because people always thought it was a bit weird or silly."

She continues, "But the older we’ve got, the more we’ve started to see the worth in it. And we’ve had some incredible experiences we now want to share with a bigger audience. We want to find a community of other people to share and learn with."

Delving into how spirituality helps her with loss, Helen shares, "That’s why I find the mediumship helpful."

"We’ve all experienced loss and when you feel that maybe there is a different energy or intelligence or life that hasn’t ended that is still around but which we can’t quite quantify, knowing that this is potentially present and that those people are still watching over you is very comforting. I feel very supported spiritually."

During an episode of her podcast, Helen revealed that an unnamed boyfriend once visited her though a medium to let her know she was in the wrong relationship. The person had died of leukaemia aged just 42.

"I went to this clairvoyant last week and she said, 'This is your ex-boyfriend, and he died very suddenly after you started dating him. He's come into the room because he's not very happy about your situation,'" she explains.

She continues, "It was wonderful to think this person, whom I didn't really know for that long, was there," concluding, "He was angry that he'd left me looking for someone else and then finding someone else who wasn't suitable."

The actress also believes she's "made some terrible decisions in my life" with the support of friendships and learning to trust her intuition helping her move forward from previous mistakes.

Discussing where she is within her career right now, Helen is currently starring as socialite Tracy Lord in Cole Porter’s High Society, at London’s Barbican theatre - her role as Trixie Franklin remains uncertain.

Helen reveals that she's "not quite ready to let go" of the character but "really excited about potentially revisiting Trixie because she’s so dear to me and has been such a massive part of my life."

Alongside her podcast, the actress is also trying to see what else she can turn her hand to outside of Call The Midwife.

"I feel like there’s a world of possibilities at the moment," she shares, adding, "I’m really in a place where I’m saying yes to anything that comes along and interested to see where that takes me."