Artists, writers and performers from across London gathered at the first ever Mental Health and Arts Festival at the Southbank Centre at the weekend (February 6-7).

The new festival, Changing Minds , looked at mental health through a programme of performances including music, comedy, design and panel discussions.

A spokesperson for Southbank said: "As the debate surrounding equal treatment for mental health grows in profile, the festival probes taboo subjects and explores the role of the arts in understanding and healing."

Speakers from across the fields of science, politics, literature and pop culture geared up to challenge stigmas surrounding topics such as suicide, depression and grieving.

A free programme of events also ran alongside the festival in the Royal Festival Hall foyer.

getwestlondon spoke to three leading figures making noise about mental health who spoke or performed at the festival.

Brigitte Aphrodite

Brigitte Aphrodite is a feminist showgirl, punk poet, musician, and theatre maker

"It came from a long period of not being able to get out of bed and I hadn't realised I wasn't really living properly," said Brigitte, when asked how she came to be a part of the festival.

"But after I got a little bit stronger and spoke to my partner about the harsh realities of what I was going through.

"I always wanted to write a musical for theatre. Suddenly it dawned on me, what it needed to be about.

"I didn't know how to express myself and didn't know how to talk at all about anything, the words couldn't really come out so writing songs and poems about my experience and researching other peoples was something I could still do."

Her solo show, My Beautiful Black Dog is a mixture of punk music, poetry, glitter and all combined with comedy.

The performer described the show like a rock n roll gig, without the mosh pit.

"Some people might find it uncomfortable when you're exposing yourself, honesty can sometimes be funny" she told getwestlondon.

"But I knew we were putting out something that was very true to my experience and any research to be done.

"I had to make it that way, bright colours, comedy, music, punk, lyricism had to be in it as I love all those things - and because its a very serious, painful subject and people find it difficult to talk about it.

If it is done in a way that's done through music, comedy and fashion, there's a little gateway for people to face it.

"It's hopeful. I know if I was a young person suffering from depression and an artist I liked was singing about it, I'd feel a sense of freedom and connection, that if they can get through it, then maybe I can too."

Jack Rooke

"Laughter is the best medicine," said 22-year-old Jack Rooke.

A comedian by trade, he stands true to his art and was part of a panel discussing comedy as a way to address issues faced by those suffering mental health.

"I'm hoping it will be upbeat and frank and honest.

"What's nice about the whole fest is its getting people to talk and communicate beyond just being at the southbank centre and encouraging more debate at it."

Jack's own experiences have contributed to his show which will tour in April after he lost his father aged 15.

"When my dad died from cancer, my mum and family found humour a valuable tool to help cope with people being insensitive, as well as it cheering us up.

"The majority of my late adolescence was taken up by grief so now the aim is to make people laugh when they might necessarily cry instead.

"They're quite powerful emotions and are linked.

"I delve into it because its still a bit of a taboo to laugh about things.

"It's about embracing the fact that life moves on and I think laughter enables people to have control over a situation and concept of control is one that I'd like to explore in my comedy and shows.

"It is the most important thing that affects people with depression, a lack of control and humour is a really good way of gaining control of a situation."

After a successful reception at Edinburgh Fringe Festival and other festivals across the UK, Jack said his favourite part was the audience's reaction to his show.

"It gets people talking, one guy came up and talked about the one year anniversary of his family member and he felt open to do that."

When asked if he gets nervous before getting on stage, he laughed.

"I'm absolutely fine until five minutes before and then I'm the worst person to be around!

"But the team of people I chose to help make this project come together are people who had lost a parent or sibling - and they calm me down.

"The best thing is to have a team around who safeguard you."

Cecilia Knapp

Cecilia Knapp during a performance

"I'm a writer so it was decided that I'd do the panel on creativity and mental health" said Cecilia .

"It can be massively healing when you're experiencing sadness to be creativity.

"Any creativity can even prevent you from feeling like that, it means you're articulating how you feel and it's very empowering."

Cecilia's words have been played on BBC radio 1 and 1Xtra, XFM and Roundhouse Radio and she now carries out workshops with young people.

"I guess when I was younger, I had a lot of experience with writing and performing that was hugely beneficial and got me out of really dark periods of my life and now I write for a job, I feel I have a responsibility to enable that in young people.

"I am hoping to try and show that people should maintain a certain level of creativity in their day to day life.

"I think the whole weekend is shining a light on something slipped under the rug.

"So many suffer from mental health problems and it's really important.

"I hope that anyone who came at the weekend will feel less alone.

"There are people making noise about this, talking about what we can do to combat it and we can reverse our inherent awkwardness about mental health."