Drink and the City

Dr JE McGregor

978-1-908062-85-7

Based on Nottingham, this study of social history describes the way drinking habits have changed and have been perceived over the last half century. Starting in the 1950s the author takes us through the escalating problem of alcohol abuse and the way it has shaped our social behaviour.

The book follows the scenario in the early post-war 1950s where it was normal to visit the local hostelry and expect to be taken home by the local policeman, to a situation where the behaviour of certain sections of the community; namely ethnic minorities, young people and women's drinking, was problematised when a new medical concept, 'alcoholism' materialised.

In the 1980s the problem of drink became not only a priority from a policing point of view but also from a health standpoint – 'drunken yobs and aggressive beggars' hit the headlines once more. But any concern about drunken yobs was overlooked by the 1990s as Government sought ways to get Britain out of the economic doldrums. Nottingham's night-time economy, as was the case in many parts of the country, proved a boost to the regional economy and the stimulus needed for Government to push ahead with plans to liberalise licensing.

The book describes the changes in the late 1990s and early 2000s in the leisure industry and licensing law relaxation which were intended to enable the English drinker to engage in a cafe culture supposedly enjoyed by our European counterparts, but brought us 'Binge Britain'. Leading this unlovely trend Nottingham became notorious as the 'Binge Capital of Britain'. Taken up by the media, the facade of "Binge Britain" (where the aim is to consume copious amounts of alcohol with the explicit purpose of getting drunk quickly time), became the acceptable idea of accomplishment for our youth.

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