Cluster Headache Awareness Day 2026
New Heads Up podcast spotlight series launches today
It’s Cluster Headache Awareness Day and the National Migraine Centre is marking the day with the launch of the first of seven special spotlight episodes of our Heads Up podcast, hosted by Dr Katy Munro. The opening episode features comedian, actor, writer and director Chris Addison, who speaks candidly about his personal experience of cluster headache, highlighting a condition that remains widely misunderstood and frequently misdiagnosed.
Dr Katy Munro and Chris Addison
The podcast is just one of the ways the charity is working to improve public awareness and understanding of cluster headache; a rare but devastating neurological condition often described as the ‘suicide headache’ due to the extreme intensity of pain.
About cluster headache
Cluster headache brings attacks of rapid onset, very severe, one-sided pain in the head, usually around and behind one eye. The pain is often described as the worst imaginable and each attack may last between 30 minutes and three hours, recurring during each 24-hour period up to eight or more times. Cluster headache is also known as the ‘alarm clock headache’ because of the often-predictable timing of attacks each day.
Alongside the pain, sufferers often also experience one or more of the following:
- Eyes water or redden
- Runny nose
- Eyelid closes
- Extreme agitation and restlessness
- Pupils shrinks in size
- Skin becomes red
- Sweating
During bouts, attacks are clustered over a few weeks or even months, often around the spring or autumn equinoxes. Although relatively rare, affecting approximately one in every thousand people (migraine affects one in seven people), the condition can have a devastating impact on quality of life.
Coming up on the Heads Up podcast spotlight series
Keep an eye out for upcoming episodes over the next couple of weeks, as we explore various perspectives on cluster headache, including children and parents sharing their experiences, cluster headache in pregnancy, and expert scientific insight into what’s happening in the brain during attacks.
You can find out more about cluster headache via our factsheet and listen to the latest Heads Up episode on our podcast page or through your usual podcast platform. For those living with cluster headache and looking for expert help, appointments with the National Migraine Centre’s headache specialist doctors are available: book here now.
For further support and information, please also check out the Organisation for the Understanding of Cluster Headache website here.
LISTEN TO THE LATEST EPISODE OF HEADS UP HERE
We are grateful for the ongoing support we receive from OUCH(UK) in providing services for those affected by cluster headache.