Corrie's Kevin Kennedy recalls 'blackout-stroke' during alcohol battle
‘I knew I would die if I carried on’: Coronation Street’s Kevin Kennedy recalls suffering ‘massive blackout-stroke’ that pushed him to quit drinking during alcohol battle
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Coronation Street’s Kevin Kennedy has recalled suffering a ‘massive blackout-come-stroke’ at the height of his battle with alcoholism on Saturday.
The actor, 60, who played Curly Watts on the soap from 1983 to 2003, described the terrifying moment as life changing as it gave him the motivation to quit drinking.
Speaking to The Sun, Kevin revealed how he collapsed after going two days without booze in May 1998, which forced him to come clean to the soaps bosses.
Sober: Coronation Street ‘s Kevin Kennedy, 60, recalled suffering a ‘massive blackout-come-stroke’ at the height of his battle with alcoholism on Saturday (pictured in November 2021)
He explained: ‘I came to in the ambulance and it scared the hell out of me. I knew I would die if I carried on but emotionally I didn’t get it, the addiction was telling me it was normal.’
Kevin described the ‘blackout-come-stroke’ as a ‘moment of clarity’ as he told Coronation Street bosses about his decade long problem.
The actor continued: ‘I knew my drinking wasn’t normal – no one else I knew drank in the morning, cancelled plans because they couldn’t get a drink or only went on holidays where they could drink the most – but I couldn’t stop.’
On set: The actor, who played Curly Watts on the soap, described the moment as life changing as it gave him the motivation to quit (pictured in 1989 with Elizabeth Dawn as Vera Duckworth)
Now, at 25-years sober, Kevin detailed: ‘Alcohol held me back, I couldn’t concentrate and made terrible decisions. Quitting alcohol gave me turbo energy.’
In lockdown, Kevin discussed his battle with alcoholism as he insisted that it was the time for people to get sober.
The actor admitted the phones ‘hadn’t stopped ringing’ at his charity Kennedy St, which aims to help people battle their addiction to alcohol.
Clarity: He explained: ‘I came to in the ambulance and it scared the hell out of me. I knew I would die if I carried on but emotionally I didn’t get it’ (pictured in November 2021)
Speaking on ITV’s Lorraine, he said: ‘We have a very small charity, Kennedy Street. Over the lockdown, our phones have not stopped ringing. It’s people who are self-medicating at home during the pandemic.
‘Now is the perfect time to get sober. We’ve been doing fundraising and we need some help. I think we may lose more people through mental health problems than with the actual virus, the way things are going.’
‘There’s no judgement. We don’t judge anyone here. We’ve all been through it. That’s the secret of it. There’s a privacy to it. You can get help without having to do much. You are not on your own.’
Help: In lockdown, Kevin discussed his battle with alcoholism as he insisted that it was the time for people to get sober
Kevin previously admitted that he ‘always had a drink near’ as he battled his addiction during his time on the cobbles.
Speaking on a previous episode of Good Morning Britain, he said: ‘I was known as a maintenance drinker where I maintained a certain level of being drunk right through the day and that balance is quite hard to find.
‘Sometimes if you went too far, you were visibly drunk but if you didn’t drink enough then you went into involuntary detox which is not very nice at all. So yeah, I always had a drink near or around me somewhere.’
Battle: Kevin has previously admitted that he ‘always had a drink near’ as he battled his addiction during his time on the cobbles
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