• Lily Allen Calls Drunken Behaviour 'Embarrassing".
• Celebrities Fuelling Rehab 'surge'.
• John Goodman, actor, quits alcohol after 30 years.
• Ewan McGregor (actor) reveals battle with alcohol.
• Dark Days of Urban/ Kidman marriage (due to alcohol abuse)
  

      Note: She said, "I got very drunk last night, too drunk. It's not cool getting that drunk".

    Well, Lily, it really isn't cool (or good for your health) getting drunk at all.  It also causes memory loss...."from what I can remember". If Alfie hadn't come to her rescue and seen her home safely, there are many things that might have happened to her - we read about those kind of things in the paper every day.

    Is it any surprise though that entertainers/celebrities get very, very drunk when alcohol is so freely allocated to each table during awards, plus the alcohol-fuelled parties they go to afterwards? 

    The other problem is, of course, the fact that young people see their 'idols' out partying, getting drunk, and enjoying it and believe that the only way to enjoy life is to do the exact same things. Most people consume alcohol 'to get drunk', and most laugh about it and make light of it after the fact.

                                   ___________________________________

    We watched 4 Corners  (10th June 08) and some friends had brought a young man in to the Emergency, who had his foot ran over by a car when they were being stupid outside a (nightclub). The girls were laughing about it and thought it highly amusing.

    You can read about it and watch videos relating to it on:

    http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/content/2008/s2265681.htm

NOTE: (If the link doesn't work, you can go to the Four Corners Website and look for "On the Piss").

 Jan 28th 2008 - ABC News

    Sydney's drug and alcohol rehabilitation services say they have received a record number of calls this month, partly because of the recent rise in the number of celebrities seeking help.

    The chief executive of Family Drug Support Services, Tony Trimingham, says January is normally a quiet month because people with children usually wait until school holidays are over before calling for help.

    "I think the celebrity thing probably does raise awareness and have people talking more," he said.

    "That can only be a good thing, but I think we have to accept there are more and more problems with alcohol."

    One of Sydney's leading drug and alcohol rehabilitation services, Odyssey House, says it was forced to turn people away last week due to the surge in demand.

    Spokesman James Pitts says there has been a 40 per cent increase in inquiries to the centre.

    Mr Pitts says while public awareness is good, the celebrity factor can tend to glamorise a difficult experience.

    "I think that one of the bigger problems is that people think when you see people like Britney Spears, who's in and out of rehab every other day, it almost seems like it really minimises the impact and importance of what rehabilitation is really like," he said.

    "It's no piece of cake."  

   Actor JOHN GOODMAN has opened up about his 30-year alcoholism battle, admitting, at his lowest point, hangovers were a "luxury".

   The former Roseanne star revealed all about his past booze issues during a Friday night TV appearance on The Late Show in America to promote his new play Waiting For Godot.

   He recalled he was "toasted pretty good" during a past appearance on the programme - when he agreed to dive into a New York City fountain fully clothed. The decade-old clip was shown, prompting the actor to quip, "Thank God it was before the YouTube.com," referencing the online network which hosts embarrassing clips of stars.

   Calling his sobriety "one of the best things that ever happened," Goodman recalled the fountain incident, telling host David Letterman, "I almost got arrested; I was real belligerent."

   At the height of his booze battle, Goodman recalled, "Hangovers, they were a luxury... I'd get the DTs (shakes). It was bad. I sweat less now."

   Asked if he was truly an alcoholic, the actor stated, "I was to the point of alcoholism 30-35 years ago!"

www.contactmusic.com 

   Long before he was battling the forces of evil in Star Wars, Ewan McGregor was battling alcohol addiction, the actor has revealed in a candid interview.

  "Originally I was a happy drunk. But later I was miserable because it's a depressant," the Scottish actor, 34, tells Playboy magazine. "I was just ashamed of myself, really."

   McGregor, who has two children with his wife Eva Mavrakis, says he was shocked that his co-workers seemed to overlook what was obviously a glaring problem. "None of my directors ever said, 'You know, I'd rather you didn't drink at work.' None of them. And they must have known," he says. "I was reeking of (alcohol)."

   (Unlike Ewan McGregor, we aren't shocked whasoever when our "say yes/ say no to drugs" Politicians, Media, Charities, Teachers,  Sporting Bodies and the rest of the co-working 'Take our drugs only" collective, forcefully and specifically overlook an obviously glaring problem that is in the face of every Australian and 3/4 of the World, and that is...abuse of a drug named 'drink' tht is advocated to all ages equally by those who tell us to 'say no to drugs'. - see section on  'Drugs & Kids').

   The Scottish actor doesn't mention which films he made while drinking too much, but says his habit may have limited his performances. "When you work drunk, you find one way to play a scene and that's it."

   McGregor, who played a heroin addict in Trainspotting in 1996, and stars in the upcoming The Island, says he stopped drinking because he was afraid he'd lose all he'd worked for. "I knew I was lucky, and somehow I knew that if I didn't stop, everything would go tits up – my career, my family, my everything."

Keith Urban began playing in pubs and clubs when he was 12.....(Qstn: what is any child doing being even allowed into a pub or club where an 18+ drug is on offer? Unfortunately, it happens all the time these days and children are constantly around alcohol either in pubs and clubs with parents, or at home or at BBQ's, picnics etc.)