With one in fourteen people in the UK dependent on alcohol today, this programme highlights the destructive effects of alcoholism on people's lives, relationships and the people around them.
This programme follows the stories of recovering alcoholics all at different stages in their recovery: Clarissa Dickson-Wright (of two fat ladies fame).
At the height of her addiction Clarissa Dickson-Wright was drinking "beer for breakfast" followed by two bottles of gin and one of vodka every day, having turned to drink to cope with her mothers death.
Alcoholism is something that affects all strata of society. For two of the people featured, they both had had alcoholic fathers - but where one was an upper-class surgeon but "an aggressive drunk" behind closed doors, the other was a father of nine who had to steal to support his habit.
The programme explores different aspects of addiction, why the drinking starts, early warning signs, effect on families, hitting rock bottom, recovery.
'Message in a bottle' shows first-hand the devastating effect of alcohol addiction on people's lives but at the same time the programme flashes up statistics that highlight the often hidden impact that alcohol has on society at large. In 70% of domestic violence against women the man is drunk.
The 'message' given to the viewer is ultimately positive - all three of the people interviewed about their alcohol problems have managed to deal with their addiction head on and are in varying stages of putting their lives back together. Even John Roberts who had only been sober for eight weeks at time of filming was rebuilding his relationship with his family. For the first time he has begun taking an interest in his son's life and you can see what his recovery has meant to them both, when he relates his son telling him at a school football match - "Dad when you're not drunk, you're brilliant".
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Last Updated ( Monday, 06 March 2006 )
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