Saving Ms Hanks: Caught between Hollywood and heartache

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Writer E.A. Hanks - also known as Elizabeth - says her childhood felt like living on two different planets after her parents split up. The daughter of actors, one of them Tom Hanks, E.A. and her brother Colin spent most of their time living in Sacramento with their mum, while weekends and holidays were spent with their dad, often on glamorous film sets. Although their mum was now sober after an addiction to alcohol and drugs, she could be paranoid and abusive, and E.A. describes her life as either a dream or a nightmare. At the age of 14, when her dad finally got custody of her, E.A. moved to Los Angeles. After her mum died, E.A. went through her journals and made a discovery that shocked her to her core. She's written a memoir called The 10: A Memoir of Family and the Open Road. The film clips you heard came from: Forrest Gump/Paramount Pictures/Robert Zemeckis Sleepless in Seattle/Tristar Pictures/Nora Ephron Presenter: Jo Fidgen Producer: Helen Fitzhenry and June Christie Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707 (Photo: Tom Hanks & Elizabeth Hanks in 2017. Credit: Patrick McMullan/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)