Famous People with Bipolar, Cyclothymia or Mood Disorders
Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 2017/11/10 - Updated: 2025/05/22
Publication Type: Informative
Category Topic: Famous Disabled People - Academic Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This article presents a comprehensive list of well-known individuals, both historical and contemporary, who have lived with mood disorders such as bipolar disorder, cyclothymia, and depression. It offers brief explanations of these conditions, including distinctions between Bipolar I, Bipolar II, and related diagnoses, making the information accessible and educational for a broad audience. The list is authoritative and useful because it draws from public records and credible reports, highlighting figures from diverse fields - such as mathematician Ada Lovelace, musician Brian Wilson, actress Carrie Fisher, artist Frida Kahlo, and author Ernest Hemingway - demonstrating that mood disorders affect people regardless of their achievements or backgrounds. This information is particularly helpful for those with disabilities, seniors, or anyone affected by mood disorders, as it reduces stigma, fosters understanding, and shows that success and creativity are possible alongside these challenges - Disabled World (DW).
Introduction
What are Mood Disorders?
A mood disorder is a condition whereby the prevailing emotional mood is distorted or inappropriate to the circumstances. The two major types of mood disorders are depression or unipolar depression and bipolar disorder.
- Bipolar I Disorder - A mood disorder that is characterized by at least one Manic or Mixed episode. There may be episodes of Hypomania or Major Depression as well. It is a sub-diagnosis of bipolar disorder, and conforms to the classic concept of manic-depressive illness.
- Bipolar II Disorder - A bipolar spectrum disorder that is characterized by at least one hypomanic episode and at least one major depressive episode. It is believed to be underdiagnosed because hypomanic behavior often presents as high-functioning.
- Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) - A personality disorder primarily characterized by emotional dysregulation, extreme "black and white" thinking, or "splitting", and chaotic relationships. The general profile of the disorder also typically includes a pervasive instability in mood, interpersonal relationships, self-image, identity, and behavior.
Main Content
List of Famous People with Mood Disorders
A list of people with some form of bipolar disorder (manic depression) including cyclothymia.
- A. C. Benson - English essayist, poet, author.
- AJ Lee - American professional wrestler and author.
- Aaron Carter - American singer.
- Abbie Hoffman - Political activist, anarchist.
- Abbott Handerson Thayer - American artist and painter.
- Ada Lovelace - British mathematician, often regarded as the first computer programmer.
- Adam Ant - English musician and actor.
- Adam Deacon - English film actor, rapper, writer and director.
- Adam Jasinski - Winner of the U.S. series Big Brother .
- Akio Chiba - Japanese manga artist.
- Alan Garner - Novelist.
- Alex Sangha - Canadian social worker and documentary film producer.
- Allison Moyet - British singer
- Alonzo Spellman - American football player.
- Alvin Ailey - American choreographer, diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
- Amber Portwood - American reality television personality.
- Amy Sky - Canadian songwriter.
- Amy Winehouse - English singer-songwriter.
- Andrew Johns - Australian rugby league player.
- Andrew Lange - Astrophysicist and Goldberger Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California.
- Andy Dunn - Co-founder and former CEO of Bonobos (apparel).
- Angus Crichton - Australian representative rugby league player.
- Anne Sexton - American poet won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry.
- Anthony Hardy - English serial killer.
- Antonie Kamerling - Dutch actor.
- Art Buchwald - Humorist and Pulitzer Prize winner.
- Arthur Lipsett - Film director.
- Arthur McIntyre - Australian artist.
- Aubrey Peeples - American actress and singer.
- August Ames - Canadian pornographic actress.
- Ayelet Waldman - Israeli-American novelist and essayist.
- Barney Bubbles - English graphic artist.
- Barret Robbins - Former NFL Pro Bowler.
- Bebe Rexha - Singer, songwriter.
- Ben Moody - Guitarist, musician, formerly with Evanescence.
- Ben Stiller - American actor, comedian, and filmmaker.
- Benga (Adegbenga Adejumo) - British dubstep DJ and producer.
- Benoît Poelvoorde - Belgian comedian and actor.
- Bernard Levin - English journalist.
- Bernard Loiseau - French chef, was the chef and the owner of Michelin restaurant-La Côte d'Or.
- Bert Yancey - American professional golfer.
- Beth Hart - American singer and songwriter.
- Bill Lichtenstein - Peabody Award-winning print and broadcast journalist and documentary filmmaker.
- Bill Oddie, Naturalist, comedian, and television presenter.
- Boon Gould - British musician.
- Brian Wilson - Musician and founding member of The Beach Boys.
- Britney Spears - American singer, songwriter, and dancer.
- Brody Stevens - American comedian.
- Bruno Zehnder - Swiss photographer.
- Burgess Meredith - Actor, had cyclothymia.
- Byron Houston - Basketball player.
- Byron Vincent - Writer, performer, and broadcaster.
- Caroline Flack - English actress and television and radio presenter.
- Carrie Fisher - Actress and writer. Starred in the Star Wars films as Princess Leia.
- Cat Hulbert - American card player.
- Catherine Zeta-Jones - Welsh actress.
- Charlene Soraia - British singer-songwriter, musician has cyclothymia.
- Charles Haley - American football linebacker.
- Charles Hamilton - American hip hop recording artist.
- Charles Mount - American artist.
- Charley Pride - Country music artist.
- Charlie Sheen - American actor.
- Cher Scarlett - American software engineer, workers' rights activist, and corporate whistleblower.
- Chris Brown - American singer, songwriter, rapper, dancer, and actor.
- Chris Kanyon - American professional wrestler.
- Chris Palko - Better known by his stage name Cage.
- Chyler Leigh - American actress
- Connie Francis - Singer.
- Corey Taylor - Singer and songwriter for Stone Sour and Slipknot (band)
- Cosmo Campoli - American sculptor and teacher.
- Craig Murray - Former British ambassador to Uzbekistan and political activist.
- Craig Owens - Singer for American bands Chiodos, and Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows.
- Cássia Kis - Brazilian actress.
- DMX - American rapper and actor.
- Daniel Johnston - Musician, singer-songwriter and visual artist.
- David Feherty - Former professional golfer on the European Tour and PGA Tour.
- David Harbour - American actor.
- David LaChapelle - American commercial photographer, fine-art photographer, music video director, film director, and artist.
- David Strickland - Actor, Suddenly Susan.
- David Walliams - Actor, author, comedian and charity fundraiser.
- Davone Bess - American football player.
- Debi Thomas - Olympic medalist, former figure skater and physician.
- Debra LaFave
- Delonte West - American basketball player.
- Demi Lovato - Singer and songwriter.
- Derek Hess - Designer and visual artist.
- Devika Bhushan - Indian-American pediatrician and public health professional.
- Devin Townsend - Musician of Strapping Young Lad and The Devin Townsend Band.
- Dick Cavett - Comedian and television journalist.
- Dimitri Mihalas - Astrophysicist.
- Dimitrius Underwood - Former American football player.
- Disco D - Record producer and composer.
- Dolores O'Riordan - Irish musician and singer-songwriter, leader of the rock band The Cranberries.
- Dorothy Wall - Australian author and illustrator best known for creating Blinky Bill.
- Doug Harvey - Canadian professional ice hockey player.
- Drewe Henley - British actor.
- Dusty Springfield - English pop singer.
- Eason Chan - Hong Kongese popular music singer.
- Edgar Allan Poe - Poet and writer.
- Edvard Munch - Norwegian painter.
- Elbridge Ayer Burbank - Artist and painter.
- Elizabeth Manley - Canadian former competitive figure skater.
- Ellen Forney - Graphic artist and cartoonist and creator of Marbles: Madness, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me.
- Ellen Joyce Loo - Hong Kong singer and songwriter.
- Emil Post - American mathematician and logician.
- Emilie Autumn - American singer and violinist.
- Emily Martin - Sinologist, anthropologist, feminist, professor at New York University.
- Eoin Cameron - Former member of the Australian House of Representatives and radio personality in Perth, Western Australia.
- Eric Millegan - Actor.
- Eric Victorino - Vocalist of The Limousines, author.
- Ernest Hemingway - American journalist.
- Everson Griffen - American football player
- Fast Eddie Johnson - American basketball player.
- FouseyTube - American YouTube personality.
- Francesco Scavullo - Artist, fashion photographer.
- Francis Ford Coppola - American film director, producer, and screenwriter.
- Frank Bruno - British boxer.
- Frank Sinatra - American singer and actor.
- Frank Wisner - OSS officer.
- Frida Kahlo - Mexican painter
- Gabriele Rabel - Botanist, physicist.
- Gaetano Donizetti - Italian composer.
- Gail Porter - British TV presenter.
- Gary Lee Sampson - American murderer.
- Gene Tierney - Actress, nominated for Academy Award for Best Actress.
- Genesis Potini - New Zealand chess player. Potini had bipolar disorder and was regularly admitted to hospital.
- Gilbert Stuart - American painter.
- Glenn Gould - Canadian pianist.
- Graham Greene - English novelist.
- Greg Inglis - Former Australian representative rugby league footballer and captain of South Sydney Rabbitohs.
- Gustav Mahler - Composer.
- H. V. Meyerowitz - Artist, educator and British colonial administrator in Africa, had cyclothymia.
- Halsey - American singer and songwriter.
- Harry Smith - American Olympian.
- Heinz Prechter - Entrepreneur, philanthropist, founder of the American Sunroof Company (ASC); former Harvard Business Club Entrepreneur of the Year.
- Heleen van Royen - Dutch writer.
- Helen Flanagan - English model, Actress.
- Helmi Juvonen - American artist and painter, diagnosed with manic-depression.
- Isa Genzken - German contemporary artist.
- Isaac Newton - English Physicist, Inventor of Calculus.
- Jackson Pollock - American artist.
- Jaco Pastorius - Jazz musician.
- James Wade - English professional darts player.
- Jane Pauley - TV presenter and journalist.
- Jang Keun Suk - South Korean actor and singer.
- Jason Nash - YouTuber.
- Jason Ricci - American harmonica player and singer.
- Jayson Blair - American journalist formerly with The New York Times.
- Jean-Claude Van Damme - Belgian actor and martial artist.
- Jeff Garlin - American actor
- Jeff Hammerbacher - Data scientist, chief scientist at Cloudera.
- Jenifer Lewis - American actress.
- Jennifer Frey - Journalist.
- Jeremy Brett - English Shakespearian actor.
- Jesse Jackson, Jr. - Former member of the United States House of Representatives.
- Jesse Zook Mann - American television producer.
- Jessica Marais - South African-Australian actress.
- Jill Janus - American heavy metal singer.
- Jimmy Piersall - American baseball player.
- John A. Mulheren - American financier, stock and option trader, and philanthropist.
- John Konrads - Australian freestyle swimmer.
- John Ruskin - English art critic of the Victorian era, art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, prominent social thinker and philanthropist.
- Johnny Manziel - American football player.
- Jonathan Brandis - American actor.
- Jonathan Hay - Australian rules footballer.
- Jonathan Morrell - English radio and television producer, was diagnosed with cyclothymia.
- Jonathan Winters - American comedian, actor, author, and artist.
- Joseph Vásquez - American independent filmmaker.
- Julian Huxley - British evolutionary biologist, eugenicist, and internationalist.
- Justin Furstenfeld - Lead singer of Blue October.
- Kanye West - Musician, entrepreneur and fashion designer.
- Karen McCarthy - Former member of the United States House of Representatives.
- Kate Millet - Artist, activist and Feminist writer.
- Katja Schuurman - Dutch television presenter
- Kay Redfield Jamison - American clinical psychologist, professor of psychiatry and writer.
- Keisha Castle-Hughes - New Zealand actress.
- Kemah Bob - American comedian.
- Kerry Katona - English television presenter, writer, magazine columnist, and former pop singer with girl band Atomic Kitten.
- Kim Novak - Actress.
- Kristin Hersh - Musician, of rock band Throwing Muses.
- Kristy McNichol - Actress.
- Krizz Kaliko - American hip hop musician.
- L. Brent Bozell Jr. - American conservative activist and writer.
- Larry Flynt - Publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications (LFP) and Hustler Magazine.
- Lee Joon - South Korean singer and actor.
- Lee Thompson Young - Actor.
- Lenny McLean - English unlicensed boxer, bouncer, bodyguard, businessman and actor.
- Lily Allen - English musician.
- Linda Hamilton - Actress, star of the Terminator movies.
- Linea Johnson - American author of the book Perfect Chaos and mental health advocate.
- Liz Miller - British physician, surgeon, campaigner and writer.
- Lou Reed - Musician.
- Louis Althusser - French Marxist philosopher.
- Lucia Joyce - Daughter of writer James Joyce, was diagnosed with cyclothymia.
- Lynn N. Rivers - Member of the United States House of Representatives.
- Lynne Perrie - English actress (Coronation Street, Queenie's Castle, Kes), singer, comedienne, presenter and author.
- Marcel Barbeau - Canadian artist and painter.
- Margaret Trudeau - Canadian celebrity and ex-wife of former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau.
- Margarita Karapanou - Greek novelist.
- Margot Kidder - Canadian-American actress.
- Maria Bamford - American comedian.
- Maria Bello - Producer, actress and writer.
- Mariah Carey - American singer-songwriter.
- Mariette Hartley - American actress.
- Mark Vonnegut - Author and physician.
- Mark Whitacre - Business executive depicted in the film The Informant.
- Mary Ellen Copeland - PhD, author, educator and mental health advocate.
- Mary Lambert - American actress, singer, and writer.
- Marya Hornbacher - Writer.
- Matthew Good - Canadian musician.
- Matthew Sweet - American singer-songwriter.
- Maurice Benard - Actor.
- Mauro Ranallo - Canadian sport announcer and commentator.
- Max Bemis - Frontman of the band Say Anything.
- Meg Hutchinson - American folk singer-songwriter.
- Mel Gibson - Actor and director.
- Melody Moezzi - Activist, lawyer, and author of Haldol and Hyacinths: A Bipolar Life.
- Michael Angelakos - American musician, frontman of Passion Pit.
- Michael Costa - Former Australian Labor party politician and Treasurer of NSW.
- Michael Slater - International Australian cricketer, forced to retire because of related symptoms.
- Michael Strunge - Danish poet.
- Michael Thalbourne - Australian psychologist and parapsychologist.
- Michael Tunn - Australian radio announcer and television presenter.
- Mike Doughty - Singer from alternative rock band Soul Coughing.
- Morio Kita - Japanese psychiatrist, novelist, and essayist.
- ND Stevenson - Cartoonist and animation producer.
- Naomi Sims - American model, businesswoman and author, widely credited as being the first African-American supermodel.
- Neil Cole - Former Australian Labor party politician.
- Nick Traina - American singer, son of American bestselling writer Danielle Steel.
- Nicola Pagett - Actor.
- Nina Simone - American singer.
- Norbert Wiener - American mathematician, philosopher, originator of cybernetics.
- Norman Wexler - Screenwriter.
- Odean Pope - American jazz musician.
- Ota Pavel - Czech writer, journalist and sport reporter.
- Otto Klemperer - German-born American conductor and composer - diagnosed with cyclothymia.
- Oxxxymiron - Russian hip-hop artist.
- Patricia Cornwell - American crime writer.
- Patrick J. Kennedy - Former member of the United States House of Representatives.
- Patty Duke - Actress, author, and mental health advocate.
- Paul Boyd - Classical animator.
- Paul Dalio - American writer, director and composer.
- Paul Gascoigne - English footballer.
- Paul M. English - Entrepreneur and Founder of Kayak (company).
- Paul Sharits - Visual artist.
- Penina Davidson - Former college basketball player at University of California-Berkeley.
- Pete Wentz - Musician for Fall Out Boy.
- Peter Steele - Frontman, Type O Negative.
- Petr Muk - Czech singer.
- Phil Ochs - Singer-songwriter, political activist. Suicide at age .
- Phil Spector - American record producer.
- Philip Graham - Publisher and businessman.
- Phyllis Hyman - American R&B singer-songwriter.
- Poly Styrene (Marion Elliot-Said) - Singer.
- Quincy Carter - American football quarterback.
- Randy Meisner - American musician.
- Ray Davies - English composer. Davies was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
- Reckful - American esports player, Twitch streamer and YouTuber.
- Reggie Sears - American recording artist, musician, singer, songwriter, composer, producer.
- Rene Rivkin - Entrepreneur.
- Rene Russo - American actress, producer, and former model.
- René-Robert Cavelier - Sieur de La Salle, French explorer who explored the Great Lakes region and claimed the Mississippi River basin for France.
- Richard Dreyfuss - Actor.
- Ris Low - Beauty pageant titleholder, Miss Singapore World.
- Robert Campeau - Canadian financier and real estate developer.
- Robert Downey Jr. - American actor and film producer.
- Robert Munsch - Author.
- Robert S. Corrington - American philosopher and professor of Philosophical Theology.
- Robert Schumann - German composer.
- Ron Thompson - American politician, former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates.
- Ronald Braunstein - American orchestra conductor and cofounder of the ME/Orchestra.
- Rosemary Clooney - American singer and actress.
- Ruby Wax - American actress, mental health campaigner, lecturer, and author.
- Russell Brand - British comedian, actor, radio host, author, and activist.
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge - English Romantic poet.
- Sarah Joyce - British singer-songwriter.
- Scott Stapp - Frontman, Creed.
- Scott Weiland - Musician for Stone Temple Pilots, Velvet Revolver.
- Sean Costello - American blues musician.
- Seaneen Molloy - Northern Irish blogger.
- Selena Gomez - American singer-songwriter and actress.
- Shane Hmiel - NASCAR driver.
- Sherman Alexie - Native American poet, writer, and filmmaker.
- Spike Milligan - Comedian.
- Stephen Fry - Actor, comedian, and writer.
- Steven Page - Former singer for rock band Barenaked Ladies.
- Steven Thomas - American entrepreneur.
- Stuart Sutherland - British psychologist and writer.
- Sushant Singh Rajput - Indian actor
- Suzy Favor Hamilton - American former middle distance runner.
- Svend Robinson - Canadian politician, was diagnosed with cyclothymia.
- Swadesh Deepak - Indian playwright, novelist and short-story writer.
- Sylvia Plath - Poet and writer.
- Taylor Tomlinson - American comedian.
- Ted Turner - American media businessman. Founder of CNN.
- Teddy Hart - Canadian professional wrestler.
- Terry Hall - Lead singer of The Specials.
- The Game - Gangster Rapper.
- Theodore Roosevelt - Served as president of the United States.
- Thomas Ligotti - American horror author.
- Tiffany Lee Brown - American writer, artist, and musician.
- Tim Smith - Rugby league player.
- Timothy Treadwell - American environmentalist and bear enthusiast, featured in the documentary film by Werner Herzog titled Grizzly Man.
- Tina Malone - British television actress, writer, director, and producer (Brookside, Shameless).
- Tom Fletcher - English singer, songwriter, pianist, and guitarist, of McFly.
- Tom G. Warrior - Lead singer and guitarist for heavy metal bands Celtic Frost, Apollyon Sun and Triptykon.
- Tom Waits - American singer and songwriter.
- Tommy Lynn Sells - American serial killer.
- Tony Slattery - Actor and comedian.
- Townes Van Zandt - Singer-songwriter.
- Tyler Baltierra - American reality television personality.
- Valdemar Schønheyder Møller - Danish painter, known for his depictions of sunlight.
- Vincent Crane - Keyboard player of Atomic Rooster.
- Vincent van Gogh - Artist.
- Virginia Woolf - Writer.
- Vivien Leigh - English actress, most famous for her role as Scarlett O'Hara in David O. Selznick's movie Gone with the Wind.
- Will Wood - American singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker, and multimedia artist.
- William Pitt - Earl of Chatham, British statesman.
- XXXTentacion - Rapper, singer, and songwriter.
- Yo Yo Honey Singh - Indian rapper, music producer, singer, and film actor.
- Yoon Ha Lee - Korean-American science fiction writer.
- Yung Lean - Swedish rapper and singer.
- Zelda Fitzgerald - American socialite and novelist, and wife of American author F. Scott Fitzgerald.
NOTE: If you notice any inaccuracies in this list, please reach out to us so we can correct it. Additionally, if you believe someone should be added to this list, please provide us with their name and any information to verify their disability. We value your help, and you can contact us here.
You can also view our other lists of famous and well-known people with various disabilities and conditions, including actors, politicians, and writers who contributed to society.
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: By compiling such an extensive and varied list, the article not only educates but also challenges stereotypes about mental health, serving as a reminder that mood disorders are common and do not define a person's worth or potential. The visibility of accomplished individuals who have managed these conditions can inspire greater acceptance and encourage open conversations about mental health, ultimately benefiting individuals, families, and communities. Recognizing that prominent figures have navigated mood disorders can offer solace and perspective to those facing similar challenges. Their openness not only humanizes these conditions but also encourages broader conversations about mental health, emphasizing the importance of support, treatment, and resilience - Disabled World (DW).
Author Credentials: Ian is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Disabled World, a leading resource for news and information on disability issues. With a global perspective shaped by years of travel and lived experience, Ian is a committed proponent of the Social Model of Disability-a transformative framework developed by disabled activists in the 1970s that emphasizes dismantling societal barriers rather than focusing solely on individual impairments. His work reflects a deep commitment to disability rights, accessibility, and social inclusion. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and accomplishments, visit his full biography.