Game of Thrones star Hannah Murray has opened up about being lured into a wellness cult, which led to her being hospitalised after having a psychotic break.
Murray was introduced to an “energy healer” called Grace while filming Detroit in 2016, who preyed upon her fragility after the actor was left feeling particularly exposed following a nude scene.
The actor, who also starred in Skins, told The Guardian that she was convinced Grace was a legitimate adviser as she’d been introduced to her by her personal trainer working on Detroit.
Murray added that she “ignored so many little things” that didn’t make sense in the following months, including Grace telling her how she could activate her “spiritual DNA using powerful and ancient tools”.
The actor was then introduced to Sioban, whom she paid £700 to teach her ways to “protect herself from other people’s energy”, and it was here where she became addicted to courses called Ritual Master Novice, Ritual Master Apprentice and Ritual Master Magus Hermeticus, which promised to heal her from hurt.
“I wanted to go further and further, as far as you could go,” she wrote in her new memoir, The Make-Believe, revealing the man who sat at the very top was a figure named Steve.
After a five-day course led by Steve, she became exhausted and erratic and one night had a mental break that left her hearing his voice in her head and hallucinating diagrams on people’s necks that she thought were designed to “heal” them.
She locked herself in a cubicle and, after somebody called for help, she was rushed to hospital and detained for 28 days under the Mental Health Act.
Speaking about the book, the actor said it will tell a “deeply personal story that has lived inside me for many years and which it now feels vital to share”.
“I could not be more thrilled to be working with Helen Conford, whose vision for the book aligns perfectly with mine,” she said, referring to her publisher at Hutchinson Heinemann, which will release the book in summer 2026 after winning a 13-way auction.
Hutchinson Heinemann said the book is about the “lure” of those who tell us they can save us,” and the deceptive structure of organisations that promise us ‘wellness’”.
The publisher continued: “It’s about the acting world, but also about the way all of us act, hiding our vulnerabilities from everyone except the people trained to prey on them.”
“This is the story of the blurred line between what is real and what is an illusion; what we must accept and what we wish to be true; between solid earth beneath your feet and a world where anything is possible if you only commit,” the statement read.
Murray is known for playing Gilly in Game of Thrones and troubled teenager Cassie Ainsworth in the teen series Skins.
If you are experiencing feelings of distress or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
