Brian Blessed calms his booming voice for meditation sessions with Sir Kenneth Branagh

Brian Blessed and Sir Kenneth Branagh have been friends for years, and the Oscar-nominated actor and director has been meditating with his comedian boyfriend for over 30 years

Sir Kenneth Branagh said he meditated with his good friend Brian Blessed to help with the stress of Hollywood.

The 61-year-old, who is currently gaining critical acclaim for his partly autobiographical drama Belfast, said he is looking to the rising comedian to help calm his mind.

Sir Kenneth has been walking and meditating with Brian once a week for almost four decades, and he says it has helped him cope with the stresses of Hollywood.

“We couldn’t be more opposite, but he introduced me to a meditation that I’ve benefited immensely from,” the actor and director said, according to the Daily Star.

“He had a big impact on what you might call my spiritual growth. He is this loud-voiced, larger-than-life character, but I also know him as a very deep, very calm, intelligent and cultured man,” Sir Kenneth added.

The actors met when Brian was cast in Sir Kenneth’s adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play Henry V in 1989, and in 2020 the Flash Gordon star joked about their close friendship.

“It’s a father-son relationship. He is the father and I am the son! he told the Guardian.

Brian has previously called himself a loner, as he said Sir Kenneth was his only friend and the actor thought he was “the quietest man” he had ever met.

The 85-year-old actor has also been hired by children’s meditation app Moshi, as he reads a soothing story about Brian the Booming Moshling, who travels to the moon and back in a bid to find a way to calm his loud voice. .

Sir Kenneth has previously explained how he asked Brian for help during one of the most turbulent times of his career.

In 2001, his mother had fallen ill and he was directing a play in London’s West End, while filming his role as Professor Gilderoy Lockheart in the second adaptation of JK Rowling’s books, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Sir Kenneth told Oprah.com his usual ‘problem-solving attempts’ weren’t working during this particularly stressful time, and he turned to Brian after he couldn’t stop his mind from spinning.

He said his friend brought him to his meditation group, and although he initially thought the process was “silly”, he found himself enlightened after just 30 minutes.

“I learned to recognize my problems and let them go. My mind is no longer cluttered, because every morning and every evening I start fresh,” explained Sir Kenneth.