Patrick Stewart Talks About His Father - Who Do You Think You Are?

[@HateMachine103190]

Absolutely heart wrenching. At the same time, I could listen to Sir Patrick talk about literally anything

[@steveryan2958]

Well done sir Patrick for sticking up for your mom. Legend

[@JosephGibson]

He also sticks up for his father, after learning more about him.

[@-007-2]

His Dad obviously suffered PTSD and depression over his years of service. He didn't handle it well, as the diagnosis of PSTD wasn't around yet. Discounting his father is ignorant and cruel. Obviously his mother stayed for a reason.

[@gerbaldo90]

What a heartbreaking story. And you're a testament to your mother's love and the 5 years you knew what a normal life was like. ✌️

[@-007-2]

His Dad obviously suffered PTSD and depression over his years of service. He didn't handle it well, as the diagnosis of PSTD wasn't around yet. Saying Patrick only owes his character to his mother is ignorant and cruel. He even recounts how good of a story teller his dad was, which Patrick obviously inherited.

[@gerbaldo90]

@@-007-2 that's not what I'm saying. ✌️

[@jamesfair4315]

My father had bad PTSD from being by the blast site from a Japanese torpedo on the USS New Orleans. He smoked heavily and drank but wasn't an angry man. He was non combative, though a very strong man. He was kind. I miss him because I was just beginning to understand his combat experiences in WWII.

[@jamesbaggett7223]

My father is a Vietnam veteran of the USMC as is my uncle. As I've aged I see that in their years In the military they were still suffering the effects of combat. My father was mildly abusive to my mother when they were married. Over 30 years later they are good friends who have set aside their past to get over the trauma.

[@darrenburnfan]

I know my dad was in the 1st battalion of the Cheshire Regiment, but I know very little about his war service, except that he was a machine gunner and served in Egypt and fought at El Alamein. He may also have been on the D-Day landings and later on served in Holland and Belgium. Like a lot of those who were in the thick of the battles and the fighting, he came home with what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but which wasn’t recognised at that time. They were simply ordered to pull themselves together. I remember a childhood in Cheadle Heath where he was alright for a few weeks and then the slightest thing would set him off and he would go berserk, violently attacking my mother and wrecking our home. He never touched me or my brother or sister, though. All his anger was directed towards my mother. After he’d calmed down, he’d come to the bottom of the stairs, look up at us sitting on the landing and ask us what we were doing up there. A real Jekyll and Hyde character who couldn’t remember what he’d just done. If there’s one thing a child needs in the home, it’s consistency. He needs to know where he stands with his father. I didn’t know where I stood with my father, nor whether to love him or hate him. So at a very early age, I decided to hate him. One of these outbursts would be followed by a few weeks of uneasy calm and then he would fly off the handle again. I used to think that we were the only family that this ever happened to until I saw the BBC Television programme “Who Do You Think You Are?” that featured the actor Sir Patrick Stewart, who’s description of what his father was like when he came back from the war was identical to what my family experienced.

[@arthas640]

That was pretty common for WW2 veterans. 2 of my grandma's brothers fought in WW2, 1 never came back and the other never spoke about it. After he came back he had to sleep in the kitchen or the barn since he'd cry at night and sometimes he'd wake up screaming. He never spoke about his time in the army to anyone, not the family and not even his wife. The man I think of as my grandpa was actually my dads stepdad, my actual grandpa never had a loving relationship with any of his family and we found out he'd been in the military 10 years after he died. If you've seen Don Draper on Mad Men then you 've pretty much seen my grandpa; we was a VERY high functioning alcoholic who'd drink a bloody mary at breakfast, cocktails at lunch, take swigs out of a flask at work, then drink belts of scotch all night and still managed to work 60-70 hours a week... BUT also cheated on every wife he had, was at one point married to 2 women in 2 countries, cheated my grandma with his mexican wife Linda, then later cheated on THAT Linda with ANOTHER Mexican woman named Linda, and would make my dad fight in bare knuckle boxing matches against up to 4 people at once (4 kid older then my dad against my dad by himself).

[@arthas640]

There was only one time that my biological grandfather tried to hit my grandma... it didnt end well. Her family were all Norwegians who'd grown up in places where it snowed 10 feet thick, she learned to kill a deer with a rifle before she could ride a bike, and she was driving a combine at age 7. He hit her once and she pulled a butchers knife on him and threatened to geld him like a horse right there in the kitchen.

[@cornishmaninamerica4981]

Thank you for writing that.

[@nillyk5671]

The five first years are so very important for a person's life and your mother did an absolutely amazing job at raising you and your brother ❤

[@georgejo7905]

Patrick. Violence in the home teaches extemporisation and the ability to act or conversely be frozen. This dichotomy has held me in thrall for 70 years. Making either useful has been the art of my life .

[@malcsbigsis]

I'm profoundly moved by Sir Patrick's story and the recollections you have all been so kind to share. My Dad wasn't violent, he was just absent. Mum was the violent one.

[@SRSR-pc8ti]

Patrick you have a great soul :)

[@jgrj52]

Hurt people hurt people. His father was screaming out in fear and pain and while that doesn't excuse his actions it does provide clarity to the man

[@LGranthamsHeir]

Love to see that Sir Patrick's wardrobe is exactly the same he is wearing in the "Star Trek: Picard" series 😉

[@jerrilynhenson9024]

I saw the one where you were telling your brother. As you know it’s now called PTSD. He may never have wanted to talk about it. Such as it was. But now you can know the why’s of things. And things he didn’t understand and his soul regrets. 🙏😢

[@walter.bellini]

Thank you Sir Patrick for publicly sharing private family moments with us. It must have been difficult during your younger years.

[@hannahmich7342]

I remember the stories my father once told me about the war. It had a profound effect on him and not in a positive way.

[@skippertheeyechild6621]

My grandfather never talked about it. We found out some things about his time in WW2 after he passed away. I can see why he never discussed it.

[@hannahmich7342]

Skipper The Eye Child The most negative effect my father was exposed to happened when dad went to a concentration camp. The camps were only found days before he got there. He was brought there I think was the fact he could speak many languages and would translate and interrogate people. He wanted to get as much food as he could to feed these people but doctors told them that ordinary food would be harmful to the starving prisoners and the diet was given to them to slowly return them to health. On one other event he was brought to a river valley that he said was very beautiful. On the far side of the valley and built into the side of the hills were a massive cave complex that were build to house aircraft manufacturing operations. The Germans had just walked away a short time before they got there. In side were French slave works who were too fearful to come out. Dad were to the entrance and spoke in French to them but only a couple of them came out. One of the slaves had to be carried out. So they just piled food and water in the passageway and let them come and get it after they left.

[@skippertheeyechild6621]

@@hannahmich7342 Your dad had it really rough. It's good that he was able to talk about it though, because stories like these are a warning to future generations (don't let it happen again). My grandfather was a POW. He lied about his age to join up to the war effort. We know that his parents weren't happy about this. We don't really know too much about what he went through, we know where he was imprisoned, we know he had to do a three day march to get there (they had a loaf of bread between 20-30 of them). His parents thought he was dead for the longest time, a welsh man eventually wrote to them to tell them he was taken prisoner (we assume he was listening to a german broadcast about prisoners they had taken). We are pretty proud of him, I'm sure you are the same with your dad. They were hardy folk around that time.

[@merickful]

Read his book! It's wonderful and it really paints a beautiful portrait of his life!

[@ATINKERER]

My father was a monster too, all the time, and he didn't even drink.

[@tigertiger1699]

🌹

[@lisa-mariegray5510]

💐

[@tigertiger1699]

Shame mate, not sure how to ask .. but.... I appreciate your being open & sharing..., takes strength to do that👍

[@ATINKERER]

@@tigertiger1699 It was a totally dysfunctional family. It was a family of predators who attacked only victims who were family members and could not escape, but not outsiders who could fight back or run.

[@Mumscup]

Darling , all we can do is try and break the patterns of our upbringing and that’s not straight forward but it can be done. I wish you love and caring and all the things you deserve.

[@Fishhunter2014]

My maternal grandfather had a very similar story.

[@marvinthemaniac7698]

PTSD was later found to be the root cause of his father's violent behavior.

[@jblyon2]

I remember him passionately responding to a question once about how unacceptable domestic violence was. I'm a huge Trekkie and already respected him greatly, but my respect for him grew 10 fold after seeing that. That's not meant to play down the effects of PTSD either. There was no treatment for it at the time, and sadly it is still greatly lacking for those impacted by it, both directly and indirectly.

[@marvinthemaniac7698]

@@jblyon2 in a way, both of his parents suffered.

[@PatrickEvans-x1v]

I don't think so I think he was violent because of the way his own father treated him

[@marvinthemaniac7698]

@@PatrickEvans-x1v nope!

[@Drakcirlm]

@@PatrickEvans-x1v No, I watched the entire episode and that's not the case.

[@bwhog]

Only Patrick Stuart could pull out the word "raconteur"! 😆

[@CharlotteFairchild]

I never saw my Dad when I was growing up because he was in the military.

[@bikkiikun]

Being a good military man and suffering, obviously, from PTSD does not excuse him being an arsehole familyman. Yes, he was sick and should have gotten help. But he was also a violent criminal. People tend to forget this, when the victim is a wife.

[@garywagner2466]

“Excuse” is the wrong word. You meant “explain.” Since it is clear that you don’t understand what PTSD or shell shock are, even after watching this program, your judgemental comment is meaningless.

[@bikkiikun]

@@garywagner2466 : This is not a judgement. He was a bad person even before joining the military. In context of the time, having a child out of wedlock, hurts the mother and the child severely. And that was well established knowledge. Still he decided not to marry the mother for many years. And that was WAY before his PTSD. PTSD is regrettable. And it needs to be treated. When it comes to violence against women and children, not the victim is to focus of compassion, but the "poor" perpetrator. That is not judgment, that is a sad fact.

[@garywagner2466]

Which is still judgemental, based on your personal mores and values.

[@bikkiikun]

@@garywagner2466 I have to admit, that yes it is a judgment. Doesn't make it any less true, though. If the victim is a woman or child, society suddenly "discovers" compassion for the most often male perpetrator. And while, an explanation certainly is necessary for diagnosis and treatment; as well as prevention. It is usually turned into an excuse at the expense of the victims, who are forgotten and left to their suffering.

[@JosephGibson]

@@bikkiikun Huh? do you know why? likely monetary reasons. Besides, he did when he could. It seems you dont really know much because you have not listened to what Patrick has said and learned. His father suffered greatly, and if he had seeked help, he would have been institutionalised and {Patrick would not be born.

[@lisabrook3191]

Found out recently that patricks mum was a member of our family, my mums side(my grandad) was william barrowclough, when i look at patrick he very much has what we call the "barrowclough nose".. i am currently trying to find out about that side of my family 😊😊

[@onebigkahuna69]

I can understand what it was like.My Dad spent almost 28 years of his life in the Military.He was a WWII,Korea and Vietnam Vet.My Brother spent 26 years in the Army and his last duty station was in Baghdad.I can't remember if it was right after our Dad had passed or before he told me a story.First thing he said do you remember how dad was before the last time he went to Vietnam.?I was five turning six when he went away.My brother was ten at the time.He said dad was pretty much a happy lucky guy.When he came back he was mad all the time.The reason my Brother told me this is because he was able to maybe understand what happened to our dad.My dad and Brother used to have knock down drag out fights when my brother was in his late teens and i do suspect there was some domestic violence against my Mom.My Brother told me that when came back he would drive down the Interstate mad and he couldn't figure why he was mad.?He was a tough guy and PTSD couldn't happen to him.?He was a senior NCO and had to go to meeting with an Officer and when they left the secure area and would run in convoys as fast as they could through the streets of Bagdhdad and there was time he said i wish we could stop and shoot back because he was tired of being shot at.I think this goes back to him being on the Interstate and running fast and getting mad at people who wouldn't get out of the way and i think he was able to understand why our Dad was mad all the time..

[@cordelia81]

funny to see how there is a father being a star in a certain field and how it repeats...and then how to point out importance and taking the attention with a certain kind of authority/ I think its not by chance how we may decide and must take it as a warning to not continue the bad things

[@TheVampireWizard]

I don't think his Dad was evil. The traumatising thing for his mother is how much war probably changed him. Had war not been a factor, I believe he'd be a much better man.

[@BookOfFaustus]

Dad looks like Reinhard Heydrich

[@Skymaster.47]

Or Ian Fleming. Lol

[@SethBrundleify]

Army life is no excuse for what Alfred Stewart did to his family.

[@tn270585]

It was PTSD.

[@vindamato9969]

This is a man talking about his father and trying to dive deep in to why he was this way, and why he was angry. Army isn't an excuse, it's the reason. This was a person to endured immense struggle during war, and had no brackets when he came home to alleviate or discuss it. He was told "Chin up, man." Now maybe you're one of the soldiers who leaves unscathed, no PTSD, live well. Fine, that's okay, there's enough who do. And there's enough who simply don't. But to say Army life and war doesn't cause these intense psychological issues is plain wrong, and you're not taking the time to examine it.

[@admiralgoodboy]

SethBrundleify this was ww2 man. WW2!

[@JosephGibson]

@@admiralgoodboy It was not just WW2, he was involved at the start of it, completely ill-prepared at Dunkirk. With fast German advancement, dealing with the panzer divisions and the luftwaffe.

[@admiralgoodboy]

Joseph Gibson thats what im saying all of it you have a quite the effect on ones mental issues

[@Jimmy-fg6hm]

It's kinda weird that Captain Picard reflects both of Patrick's parents.

[@PrescottHome]

No excuse for hitting a woman. None. No crocodile tears for him. PTSD and all.

[@wackey2k10]

if a woman hits you, at least if violently, then ofc you can hit back with comparable force. equal rights equal fights. but hitting a woman if she verbally abuses you, ofc you can't resort to physical violence.

[@-007-2]

That's the attitude that leads to vets not getting help. PTSD isn't an excuse, but it is the REASON and the reason needs addressing. He needed professional help, and he never got it. He, and his family, suffered because of it.

[@RaffieFaffie]

Servile comment

[@brunolobo7977]

He was a pretty, cute boy!!!!

[@L-mo]

So sad

[@johnborthen1468]

The past makes today an then future

[@AlexandraBondArt]

Young Patrick shouldn’t have had to put his body between his mother and his father’s violence.

[@Unpluggedx89]

Is that Mark Strong narrating?

[@freddysquirenaranjo4859]

YES it is Mark Strong!

[@loganv0410]

Your statement "he got angry" misses the point that for many PTSD vets we're angry all the time. Drinking allows us (psychologically) to let the anger out; to relieve the pressure of that constant, thrashing, built-up anger. It's one reason I dare not touch 'rocket fuel' ever again! And like your father mine was great at his job. Another outlet for the anger?

[@klarheit3909]

Bis jetzt wusste ich es nicht

[@sophiee.h]

29 August 2012

[@stitcha123]

Patrick’s dad was Alf Stewart.

[@svtirefire]

Congratulations, you watched the video.

[@JMMM1986]

@@svtirefire Congratulations you didn't get the Home and Away joke

[@pabloescabar1038]

Why can no one acknowledge, in comments; what happened to this man during the war?

[@missbeauitful4696]

I always thought he was part from China

[@anonymous.2660]

Who

[@Nipponing]

@@anonymous.2660 Patrick Steward ofc.

[@jenniferpearce1052]

Really?! That's astonishing. I don't see that at all!

[@justin8894]

1:30 he says he doesn’t recall being hit by him; he’s lying. His hand goes to his face and he gets fidigity.

[@5owlsinacoat]

It might be something he either hasn't come to terms with or doesn't want to talk about

[@-007-2]

He didn't put his hand to his face or get fidgety. He scratches and itch by his eye 8 seconds after mentioning it.

[@marvinthemaniacaldancingap3291]

The only reasons why Alfred Stewart was never convicted OR arrested for his multitude of domestic violence offenses was because he wasn't "criminally responsible" having been a decorated war hero while also suffering shell shock from his military service in the second world war. Had he been growing up in America, Patrick Stewart's father would not have gotten away with abusing his wife and justifying it through PTSD he suffered as the result of being in a war. In fact, Alfred Stewart would have been arrested by the MP's (Military Police), sent to the Guantanamo Bay Prison in Cuba, kicked out of the army for abusing his authority, and his poor battered wife Gladys Barroclough WOULD have been safely divorced with her eyes fully opened to the truth about her husband's treatment of her like her sons Geoffrey, Patrick, and Trevor were trying to tell her all along.

[@seruresto1386]

His father didnt justify it from pTSD. He didnt know he had that and the term didnt exist back then. Society failed Stewarts mother and father back then. Her for allowing the abuse and him for not recognizing the mental injury done to someone who fought in a war. She was supposed to be the good little wife and just accept it, and he was supposed to "be a man" and get over and forget the terrible things he saw.

[@mooneyes2k478]

The term didn't exist, but 'shell shock' did, and what it was, was certainly known. And if Alfred didn't know he didn't have shell shock, that was because he made the decision to not know.

[@drunkvegangal8089]

War damages everyone and always more civilians than soldiers

[@TheMijman]

You're wrong. People didn't care, or they turned a blind eye. Patrick Stewart said in an interview, that as a child he heard doctors and ambulance men (who he and his brother called) saying "Mr's Stewart, you must have done something to provoke him" "Mr's Stewart, it takes two to make an argument" Learn the facts before typing this nonsense you've picked out of thin air. You know what year 1945 is? not 2018. If you think this didn't happen in your glorious "America" (not a country), then you're so wrong. Look up your own history before lecturing those on theirs.

[@nestaannjarrett4948]

I'm afraid you all have got things wrong . We're talking about the the 40's. Did you know there were laws that a man could keep his wife "in line". Have them committed for going through menopause. Even today some women won't press charges. They were brought up thinking they needed a man. In trying to talk my sister into leaving her husband she was afraid people would talk about her and say there goes "L" she can't keep a man. I said, " that's better than saying there goes "L" she enjoys letting some man use her face to polish his fist.

[@Pinkielover]

We all have COVID-19 related PTSD

[@taylorbasford4542]

todays generation is too coddled. back in my day we buried our trauma inside and took it out on the wife and kids. like a MAN.

[@2490debrick]

Pat was a monster in his own way! Married three times and more than likely wont be the last! He can sit here like the phony liberal pariah and go on about how his father was a terrible man washing his dirty linen but as much as his parents fought they loved each other and stayed together no matter what!

[@piennuivelo]

How does marrying three times make someone a "monster"?

[@lucygray6162]

You sound like an ex-wife. Get over it,

[@hannahdyson7129]

Doesn't sound like his parents loved each other.