‘I was in a terrible state’: actor David Morrissey tells how social anxiety led him to alcoholism

David Morrissey: ‘When I’m in work, I feel safe.’ Photograph: Christian Sinibaldi/The Guardian

The actor David Morrissey has spoken of how “terrible” social anxiety contributed to him becoming an alcoholic.

“I am a recovering alcoholic,” Morrissey, who has been sober for 21 years, told Lauren Laverne on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs. “Drinking first was about anxiety. I’ve had this terrible social anxiety and that helped me get through it.”