Talking to Strangers and Other Ways of Being Human

Too much wine and a casual browse of an airline website - this is how Michael Harding found himself in a strange flat in Bucharest in early January, which set the tone for the rest of that year.

After an intense stint in a high-profile production of The Field, Harding returned to the tranquil hills above Lough Allen and started to plan some dramatic changes to his little cottage. Surely an extension would give him a renewed sense of purpose in life as he approached old age.

But as the walls of his home crumbled, so too did his mental health, and he fell, once again, into depression -- that great darkness where life feels like nothing more than a waste of time.

And yet, it is in that great darkness that we discover what really makes us human.