Paddy Considine reveals Asperger's diagnosis

Paddy Considine has opened up about being diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome.

Asperger's is a form of autism which causes difficulties in social interaction. In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, the Submarine star explained that knowing he has the syndrome has helped him to understand himself much better.

"For a few weeks after the diagnosis, I was wandering around thinking, 'Who the hell am I?' But naming my problem has helped me a lot," he said.

"It's allowed me to make sense of so many things I didn't understand before - and is allowing me to move forward with my life."

The actor and director credited his wife Shelley with being the "conduit" for his diagnosis, saying: "She could see... I was getting to a real low point in my life where the strategies I was using to cope were just hurting me."

Considine also explained that working on Victorian detective drama The Suspicions of Mr Whicher has allowed him to try a new approach which has helped him to become more confident and less anxious.

He added: "I'd been working with an acting coach who has now become a good friend. We'd been trying lots of improvisational techniques to help me with some of the problems I experience. But it's a very slow process.

"Working on Mr Whicher, I realised that the techniques were working. I don't mean every scene was perfect. But overall, I felt so much more comfortable and confident and in control. It was as if all the hard work was finally starting to pay off."

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, which also stars Peter Capaldi, Ben Miles and newcomer Alexandra Roach, airs on ITV1 later this month.