Wayne Lineker has opened up about the heartbreaking family moment that prompted him to quit alcohol six months ago. The 63-year-old O Beach Ibiza owner appeared on Tuesday's Good Morning Britain to discuss his battle with alcoholism and recent pneumonia.
Lineker told presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls that his son Dwayne confronted him about picking up his granddaughters from school. 'He said to me, "Dad, we can't have you picking up the girls from school anymore." As much as an upset as that was, it really hit home,' Lineker said.
The nightclub owner also described his daily drinking habit at its worst. 'My breakfast of choice was a cheese and tomato toasted sandwich and a vodka red bull,' he admitted. 'It was a never-ending cycle I couldn't get out of because I didn't want to spend the whole day in my villa on my own, hungover, anxious.'
Lineker revealed he came 'frightening close to death' after spending seven weeks in hospital with pneumonia. He suffered two severe attacks, the first occurring after a trip to Dubai. 'I woke up two hours later. I couldn't move at all. The pain I was receiving, it attacked the lower spine in my back,' he recalled. He crawled to his phone and called an ambulance.
He was discharged from Basildon & Thurrock University Hospital on December 28 after a lengthy stay over the festive period. Lineker described the past year as 'the worst year but the best year of my life,' citing his journey with alcohol as a turning point.
