taking paul to rehab was horrible

Alan becomes more serious when talk turns to his husband Paul, whose issues with alcohol have, in the past, taken their toll. Alan says he wasn’t aware at first that Paul was more than a social drinker. They both were. ‘I mean, we drank drank. We’d wheel in the drinks globe after Chatty Man [a prop on the show] and finish whatever was in it. Our attitude was, "It's a Monday. Let’s have a rosé.”’ Then he realised Paul had a problem, not helped by Alan’s lifestyle, which involved being away a lot touring. Paul was drinking on his own. ‘It’s horrible when you realise how bad it’s got. You’re watching someone kill themself.’

That must take a toll on a relationship? ‘Oh god, yes. i wanted to leave him. it’s the lies that get you, the, “Oh I’ll never drink again.” And then you go out, realise you’ve forgotten your car keys, go back and...’ He mimics drinking from a bottle.

Finally Alan took Paul to rehab, not telling him he was signing him in. ‘That’s horrible too. You get them there, and then have to leave them.’

But he never left for good? ‘You can’t. Not when he’s the one you love.’

And there’s been a happy ending. Paul, a former party planner who now runs their farm in Kent, has been sober for two years. ‘He’s doing great. He’s focused. He goes to the gym. He has a six pack. He’s perfect. He understands the business, even though he’s not in it, and he’s reallysupportive.ina business that can be very shallow and backbitey, he’s solid.’