Laurie's suicide pact

House star Hugh Laurie made a suicide pact with his friends as a teenager - they all vowed to end their lives shortly before their 40th birthday.

The actor admits when he was 18, he was terrified about getting old and promised to kill himself rather than reach middle-age.

But Laurie, who will turn 50 on 11 June (09), insists he never seriously considered following through with his threat.

He says, "I made a pact with friends when we were 18 that we'd kill ourselves before we got to 40. It seemed such a ludicrously distant prospect. You'll never think you know more or feel more acutely or have a clearer insight into existence than you do right now.

"You hope your teenage self would forgive your 50-year-old self. It would be awful to think they'd be ashamed and appalled: that you were a betrayal of everything they thought they'd become."

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