Famed Broadway musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber said he has been sober for 16 months following a decade-long struggle with alcohol.
Videos by Suggest
During a recent interview with The Times of London, Lloyd Webber opened up about the effects that his addiction woes had on him and his family.
“You think it’s a secret, but it’s not,” he explained. “Everybody knows. I started getting into a downhill spiral.”
Lloyd Webber further shared, “About 18 months ago, the family were in a desperate state. My wife [Madeline Gurdon] was feeling she couldn’t go on.”
Referring to himself as a “recovering alcoholic,” the Phantom of the Opera composer shared, “Sixteen months ago I decided that I needed help, and it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.
He further stated that he sought treatment at an inpatient facility and began attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. “What I love about it is, you go into a room, and everybody’s equal. I’ve made friends that I wouldn’t have thought possible.”
Lloyd Webber noted that while traveling, he still finds time to attend the meetings. “I did the meeting in New York on the day I was opening Cats: The Jellicle Ball last week, and nobody said a thing. It was great fun. When you get a whole load of rednecks, it’s rather different to a meeting in Chelsea.”
He Previously Quit Drinking For Nearly 2 Years Before Relapsing
Meanwhile, Lloyd Webber said he had quit drinking. However, he relapsed after 19 months of sobriety in 2015.
“I was doing what they call ‘white-knuckling,’ without any backup, and I started to worry that I wasn’t being creative,” he recalled. “I thought, ‘I’ve said to everybody that I’m not drinking.’ So, I started to drink secretly.”
He further shared, “You don’t really think. It’s just, ‘How am I going to get through the day?’ I got that thing of seriously worrying that I wasn’t writing, and panicked. ‘Maybe I’ll have a drink. OK, I’ve written something.’ It does slightly liberate you — but then it’s more and more and more.”
Regarding his decision to get sober once again, Lloyd Webber added, “I’m lucky that nothing did go very wrong. I haven’t had some frightful accident. I thought I was getting away with it. The thing is, I am deeply sorry, and I can only apologize to people if I made a mess.”