All Saints actor Mark Priestley split with his long-time girlfriend just weeks before jumping to his death from a hotel in central Sydney, according to reports.
The news comes as more details emerge about the suicide death of the 32-year-old actor.
Priestley, who suffered from depression, had checked into a room with a balcony on the 23rd floor of Sydney's Swissotel at 11.30am Wednesday using the pseudonym Damian Barker,
The Daily Telegraph reports.
He plunged to his death 90 minutes later.
It took another three hours before Priestley's body was recovered by police on a 10th floor ledge of a building next to the hotel.
Priestley reportedly recently split from his girlfriend, playwright and actress Kate Mulvany.
The pair, based in Sydney but originally from Perth, had been together for several years and Priestley is understood to have been struggling since the relationship ended a few weeks ago.
(Mark Priestley in photos)
Long-running drama All Saints will resume filming today as cast and crew struggle to come to terms with the death of their fellow cast member, a Seven Network spokeswoman said yesterday.
The "very close, tight-knit" cast and crew were informed on set of Priestley's death and filming was called off for the day, she said.
In the show's most recent episode, Priestley's character Dan Goldman married his fellow nurse Erica Templeton, played by Jolene Anderson.
Anderson, who was very close to Priestley, reportedly injured her arm yesterday when her car was struck by a truck in an accident.
Fans have been flooding message boards on the All Saints website since yesterday, writing "RIP" tributes to Priestley.
"He was a fantastic actor and will surely be missed, but remembered forever," wrote one fan this morning.
"I remember Mark's guest appearance as an unconscious patient dressed up as a cross dresser by his mates after a bucks night," another wrote. "The Australian entertainment industry has lost one of its most promising talents".
Others struggled with the realisation that the actor behind the famously sunny All Saints character of nurse Goldman struggled with depression.
"I am shocked and heart-broken," one message posted this morning read. "We only see the great actor acting and don't think that they have any problems in the world, just goes to show you that great actors have issues with the real world also."
"How awful that such a great young guy just couldn't keep his life together," another reads.
Priestley moved to Sydney in 1997 to study at the prestigious NIDA acting school, where he graduated two years later.
He scored a break through two ABC mini-iseries, The Farm in 2000 and Changi the following year.
Priestley then appeared in television dramas The Secret Life of Us and Blue Heelers, and in 2004 joined the cast of All Saints.
He also had theatre roles in the Sydney Theatre Company's Major Barbara and the Bell Shakespeare Company's The Servant of Two Masters, both in 2003.
If you need support or information about suicide prevention contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or SANE Helpline on 1800 18 SANE (7263).
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