Bros singer Matt Goss has returned to the spotlight in the 20th series of BBC's Strictly Come Dancing. The When Will I Be Famous singer has been living Stateside for the last few years where by his own admission, he became a 'recluse' following a major trauma that changed him as a person, writes The Mirror.
For eight years, the 53 year old locked himself away after his mum Carol died in shocking circumstances. She had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was living with Matt in Los Angeles so that he could care for her in her final days.
Determined to keep her as comfortable as possible, Matt drained her lungs each day, explaining: "It's one of those things that it's not just about leaving, it's the things that go into trying to keep her alive and trying to maintain her dignity."
Sadly, the end came suddenly when an IV drip caused Carol's stomach to rupture. "I knew that I wouldn't have a mother within 12 hours and sure enough it was 12 hours later she passed," Matt told White Wine Question Time, revealing the 'violent experience' left him with PTSD.
Speaking to the Mirror and other news outlets, he explained how the trauma saw him shrink into himself and withdraw from the world. He said: "I knew in a somewhat unhealthy way that I was becoming reclusive in my world because it was shows, concerts, touring.
"And then I was retreating far too heavily, certainly on the 11th year of my residency and I was like... I lost my mum and I steamed through my grief with my work and I spent a little bit of time on my album." However, after years of estrangement, Carol's death eventually reunited Matt with his brother and Bros bandmate Luke.
"When you lose your mum, emotions are high and all your nerve endings are broken. I have to say it broke us a little bit," he previously told The Mirror. "Then I got a call from my brother's wife Shirley. Me and Luke just jumped on the phone and started talking
"It was a couple of years after mum passed. I realised, there and then, that Luke is the love of my life." More recently, it was a trip back to the UK changed everything for Matt and convinced him it was time to start living again. "I spent time throwing frisbees and kicking a football around Hyde Park and London got under my skin. I literally said, 'I want to go home,'" he explained.
"Then literally two weeks after that, Strictly called and it was one of those things. I'm either going to go back to London and go to a reclusive place or I'm going to come and be really happy and meet people like Fleur [East], who is so full of life and so kind.
"I am bloody nervous but it's a decision because I felt myself going into not such a good place and I already feel better now that I've made the decision." Matt also insisted that it was a "big misconception" that musicians and singers would find it easier to dance.
He said: "I thought I might have an advantage with the music but you are immediately bloody humbled when you go in there! It goes against everything... there's no messing up on stage. On this show, everything you can messing up."
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