Borough’s binge-drinkers on Panorama

THE spotlight will be thrown on Oldham’s boozers tonight, as BBC’s “Panorama” looks at binge drinking in town centres across the UK.

The show, “The Truth About Happy Hour”, on BBC1 at 8.30pm, will look at the realities behind the cheap drinks promotions which tempt revellers to Oldham’s bars on Friday and Saturday nights.

The programme studies the issues of alcohol-related crime and public disorder and features graphic footage of a man who was recently admitted to hospital with severe facial injuries following an unprovoked attack in an Oldham nightclub.

The documentary will also examine the public health issues related to alcohol and features an interview with Dr Nick Gili, A&E consultant and clinical director of unscheduled care at The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Royal Oldham Hospital.

The programme, presented by Richard Bilton, comes as Oldham Council is reviewing the licences of pubs and bars in the town centre in a bid to crack down on cheap drinks promotions.

A number of town centre establishments have already appeared before the council’s licensing committee, as it tries to introduce new rules to curb binge drinking including only allowing people to buy two drinks at a time and introducing a Post Office-style queuing system at bars.

This comes against the backdrop of a new national scheme, known as “The Campaign for Smarter Drinking”, which was launched by the drinks industry and the Department of Healthlast month.

The five-year, £100 million, campaign will launch next month with displays at retail outlets, advertisements on drink mats in pubs and bars, and on-pack messages.

Secretary of State for Health Andy Burnham said: “While the vast majority of people enjoy alcohol in moderation, we’re facing a growing problem where people are regularly drinking too much or are dependent on alcohol. I hope this campaign will make a real difference to people’s attitudes to drunkenness and their drinking behaviour.”




“Panorama: The Truth About Happy Hour” is on BBC1 at 8.30pm tonight