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David Harbour has spoken for the first time about Lily Allen's breakup album West End Girl, which was released in October 2025 and detailed their split and alleged infidelity.
"It was weird," Harbour told Variety in an interview published June 10. "I do believe that it is the privilege of every artist to use their experience to create art, and so I respect her for doing that." He added, "Stories are complex, and that's why I say I respect her creation of art to channel her experience. It wasn't my experience."
The Stranger Things star, 51, said he values privacy despite public interest in his personal life. "It's my private life. In spite of the fact that a lot of people don't allow me a private life, I value it. And I also value the lives of the people that I interact with privately. I just won't speak about that."
Harbour admitted the fallout from the breakup and the album contributed to a difficult period. "I had a breakdown. I do suffer from some confusing stuff — it's confusing as h---," he said, referencing his bipolar diagnosis. "Under times of extreme stress, that can cause somewhat erratic behavior, and it's embarrassing, and I'm ashamed of it. It's not something I choose, and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy."
Harbour described how his heightened sensitivity has been both a source of creativity and a challenge. He said that the same nervous system that allows him to fully embrace joyful moments with colleagues can also push him into unusual behavior when stress becomes overwhelming.
Allen, 41, told British Vogue that her album drew inspiration from her marriage but wasn't meant to be taken as a literal account. She acknowledged that some of the themes reflected real experiences, yet stressed it wasn't a word-for-word retelling. For her, the record became a way to work through the emotional weight of the breakup, channelling feelings of confusion, grief, sorrow, and helplessness into her first release in seven years.
Harbour and Allen married in 2019 before separating in 2024.
