Adrian Chiles has drank alcohol every day since he turned 15.
The 51-year-old TV presenter has revealed that although he’s been drinking for the past 36 years, he managed to convince himself for a long time that he didn’t have a problem.
Adrian, who has just filmed a documentary about alcohol for the BBC, told The Sun: ‘I’ve been drinking for 36 years since I was 15, more or less every day.
Honest account: Adrian Chiles, 51, has revealed he has drunk alcohol EVERY DAY since he was 15 but he admits he ‘didn’t think he had a problem’
‘I’ve worked out that if I lined up every drink I’ve ever had, the row of glasses would stretch beyond two-and-a-half miles – the length of 44 football pitches.
‘Yet somehow I’d convinced myself I didn’t have a problem. Hardly any of my many friends or acquaintances would say I have a problem, either… it never looked like I had a problem.’
The former Daybreak host admitted that because his drinking never led to disasters, he never considered it to be a serious issue.
He said: ‘I’ve worked out that if I lined up every drink I’ve ever had, the row of glasses would stretch beyond two-and-a-half miles – the length of 44 football pitches’ (pictured as a teen)
Adrian said he very rarely drank during the day, didn’t drink alone, or get into fights – he doesn’t even get hangovers.
So his issues were harder to spot. But he has realised he’s not completely OK.
Just a week ago, he told Radio Times that he had decided to cut down on drinking after confessing to drinking the equivalent of six pints of Guinness A DAY.
The presenter also discussed his crippling anxiety, admitting he is ‘undoubtedly dependent on alcohol’.
Didn’t see the signs: Adrian said he very rarely drank during the day, didn’t drink alone, or get into fights – he doesn’t even get hangovers so he didn’t realise how bad things were
He said he was diagnosed with anxiety disorder back in 2012 shortly after he was sensationally dumped from ITV’s breakfast show, Daybreak.
Speaking about his drinking habits, he said: ‘The word “alcoholic” is outdated, but I am undoubtedly dependent on alcohol to some extent – and if I am, thousands of others are.
‘The only days I literally drank nothing were when I was broadcasting in the evening.’
The television personality overhauled his lifestyle after discovering his daily drinking and boozy sessions which included four pints of Guinness, four bottles of beer, a glass of champagne and five glasses of wine was putting him at risk of developing a series of health problems.
He added: ‘I needed an actual reason to abstain totally.’
Adrian, who is tackling Britain’s drinking habits in BBC2 documentary, Drinkers like Me, added he had in the past done TV with a hangover, revealing sometimes he was ‘fine on air’ but felt ‘absolutely wasted afterwards’.
Adrian, who split from wife Jane Garvey in 2009 has decided to address the normality of drinking in the new documentary, adding he doesn’t ‘drink more’ because he’s divorced now and said his love of booze wasn’t a factor in the demise of their marriage.
Truth: He said he was diagnosed with anxiety disorder back in 2012 shortly after he was sensationally dumped from ITV’s breakfast show, Daybreak (pictured above with Christine Lampard)
Tough times: Adrian, who split from wife Jane Garvey in 2009, (pictured) has decided to address the normality of drinking in his new BBC documentary