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The Sesh

Episode 3 of 6

By throwing himself into both sides of the drinking spectrum, Duncan hopes to come to terms with who he is with alcohol, and who he might be without it.

With a younger generation seemingly drinking less and achieving more, Duncan begins to feel as little embarrassed at his own drinking levels. He wonders if he wouldd be more successful, happy and healthy if he didn't drink alcohol. By throwing himself into both sides of the drinking spectrum, Duncan hopes to come to terms with who he is because of alcohol, and who he might be without it.

With a culture that captures everything on camera, being drunk or saying something stupid might get you on social media and lose you your job, or worse. What about losing control in front of millions of live viewers on TV? Duncan meets Dean, happily working away in a pawn shop in Partick until he got drunk standing next to Jackie Bird on the 2015/6 New Year show. Because of this, he ended up the talk of Scotland and being recognised in the street to this day. Was going viral while drunk a good or a bad experience?

Duncan looks for other reasons why people don’t drink and what they do as an alternative. He goes for dessert with Iqra, a young woman in the Scottish-Asian community who has never drunk or ever been on a night out. What does she get up to while other folk are out drinking?

Duncan begins to see that there are clearly plenty of alternatives for booze-free activities, but with alcohol being heavily ingrained in some working cultures, he begins to question how you would go about giving up alcohol if you worked around it. Young brewer Andy invites Duncan to his brewery in the Borders for a tour and a chat about what it’s like to be surrounded by booze all of the time. Could he give up beer and still work around it?

What does a night out look like when you’re teetotal? Duncan heads to a pub in Falkirk to meet Katie, a young non-drinker who just isn’t that bothered about alcohol, but still loves going out with her friends. Will Katie and Duncan have a good laugh without alcohol, or will they just get tired and go home early?

He then heads to meet self-described ‘woman of extremes’ Lauren for a night out in Glasgow. After a drink or three, where will they end up? Is drinking heavily one week, then abstaining the next really a healthy habit? Can that binge-drinking lifestyle be maintained throughout adulthood?

28 minutes

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Duncan Cowles
Producer Duncan Cowles
Director Duncan Cowles
Executive Producer Jordan Laird
Executive Producer Ian Greenhill
Series Producer Andy Maas

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