Terry Hall's Tragic Childhood Resurfaced After His Death: Singer Abducted?

The Specials' singer Terry Hall endured traumatic experiences before his death.

On Dec. 18, The Specials confirmed the devastating news about Hall's passing. He played a huge role in the band as one of its earliest members. But long before he pursued his career in music, Hall went through traumatic experiences that challenged his capacity as a person.

Before his passing, he appeared in an interview in 2019, where he revealed that he got kidnapped when he was 12.

"At 12 I got abducted by a pedophile ring in France, which was a real eye-opener. And I can laugh about it now but it sort of switched something in my head and it's like I don't have to do that and that's when I started, like, not listening to anyone," he told Richard Herring, according to Express UK.

He did not reveal how long he was abducted, but he said that he was later attacked and abandoned by the kidnapper - who turned out to be his French teacher.

After the incident, he became dependent on drugs and got addicted to Valium. He also refused to go to school and chose to sit on his bed instead for months.

At the age of 15, he dropped out of school as he dealt with his drug and alcohol abuse. He also suffered from depression which once led him to attempt suicide.

Terry Hall Attempted Suicide Before Death

In the same interview, Hall recalled what happened in 2004. At that time, he attempted suicide and got diagnosed with bipolar disorder. His health struggles, however, led him to find his way back to The Specials after quitting the band years prior to the incident.

Hall noted that it took him years of medication and treatment to finally overcome the trauma he suffered from when he was a kid.

To cope with it, he also used music and wrote the song, "Well Fancy That" during his time with Fun Boy Three in the 1980s. The song lyrics go: "The hedge that you dragged me through led to a nervous breakdown / If I could have read, what was going on inside your head, I would have said, that I was blind to your devious mind / There's no excuse, but your abuse, and the scars that it leaves."

In the end, he said that the only way to get through it and cope with the experience was to write about it.

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