From Headlines to Hard Times

From his time as a Reuters trainee in Fleet Street and Hong Kong, viz a decade at the BBC to News at Ten bulletins for ITN, Ed was a brilliant reporter who climbed to the top of his profession. But lurking in the background was a growing dependency on alcohol and credit card debts that ran out of control. Ed's marriage collapsed after twenty-five years, and he was eventually declared bankrupt. With nowhere to live, no job and not a penny to his name, he had no choice but to sleep rough on a bench on Hove seafront. Ed's story became headline news when a local reporter came across him just before Christmas. The shocking tale of his dramatic fall from grace sparked a media frenzy and he was soon on the front pages of national newspapers, on radio and television. A half-hour documentary , Saving Ed Mitchell, was broadcast on ITV to an audience of nearly five million. Within days, Ed was able to book into Europe's most famous rehab centre, The Priory, thanks to a benefactor who had read his story. His time there was emotionally tough, but allowed him to finally get a grip on his addiction. He is now more than a year into his recovery.
In this stunningly candid book, Ed finally tells his own story. The pages are filled with hilarious anecdotes from his time as a news reporter in Fleet Street, Hong Kong, Zurich and Singapore. With searing honesty he recounts his fall from household name to the anonymity and degradation of being a rough sleeper and the moment he knew he had hit 'rock bottom.' His story shows starkly how anyone can slide into similar destitution but it also movingly provides hope that anyone has the power to change.