Assessing the relationships between late night drinks marketing and alcohol-related disorder in public space

Abstract

In recent years there has been growing concern voiced about an apparent rise in alcohol-related public disorder or ‘binge drinking’ within the weekend night-time economy in the UK (e.g. Bright & Hinsliff, 2004; Iredale, 2004; Travis 2004; The Times, 2005). The problems associated with excessive alcohol consumption in public space have become unusually high profile in recent times. This is highlighted by the popularity of TV shows such as the BBC ‘fly-on-the-wall’ documentary series Drunk and dangerous, broadcast in early 2004 or the Bravo satellite TV channel series Booze Britain, broadcast twice daily later that year and Booze Britain II: Binge Nation the year after. Such behaviours have even been receiving publicity in an apparently perplexed foreign media (e.g. Altaner & Monaghan, 2004; Bamber, 2005; Jolly, 2004) and to the extent that Prime Minister Tony Blair has described this pattern of behaviour as “the new sort of British disease” (Morris, 2004)…