Comedian Tony Slattery’s past struggles with cocaine and alcohol addiction may have led to his untimely death despite years of sobriety, an expert has suggested.
The beloved star passed away at the age of 65 on Tuesday (January 14) following a heart attack on Sunday (January 12), his longtime partner of 40 years confirmed, reports the mirror.
The former Channel 4’s Whose Line Is It Anyway? host had previously opened up about the extent of his battle with addiction. In an open television interview in 2019, he revealed that during his darkest hours he would consume 10 grams of cocaine and two bottles of vodka every day.
Despite his “lifelong struggle with dark demons”, he managed to overcome his addiction and remained clean for several years. However, an expert believes that the damage may have already been done.
Ian Hamilton, associate professor at the University of York, explained to MailOnline how cocaine and binge drinking can have lasting effects on the heart.
He told the press: “While it is good news that he was able to overcome and abstain, the damage could have already been done. Especially with cocaine as it has an effect on the cardiovascular system through the heart.
“Unfortunately, alcohol is a really sneaky drug – it slowly sneaks up on you before it causes problems. Cocaine is highly addictive and very damaging to the heart.”
While Hamilton stressed the importance of seeking help and abstaining from alcohol, he fears the damage may have already been done to Tony’s body.
The expert revealed that at the peak of Tony’s addiction, if his claims are true, he consumed around 50 units of alcohol daily.
“When you consider that the Chief Medical Officer’s advice is 40 units a week, this is significantly above the recommended level,” he noted.
The funnyman’s last picture was taken on Christmas Day. Sharing the family photo on social media, he reflected on what he called a “wonderful year” and offered a heartbreaking toast to a “healthy, happy new year”.
Dressed in a blue-striped shirt adorned with glitter decorated with holly leaves around the neck, he said: “Hello everyone watching, Tony Slattery here. President of the Rambling Club.
“We’ve had a wonderful year and it’s thanks to you, the listeners, and also the Patreon people who keep us going. We’re growing exponentially and we love doing it. This is just to say thank you and Merry Christmas.”
He added: “Oh and the guests we’ve had on. We’ve had Hacker the dog, which was hilarious, Julian Carey who I’ve borrowed this from (he shook his glitter).
“He’s in the panto but saved it for me. We’ve got a lot of really interesting guests lined up but we’ll keep it a secret for now.”
Sir Stephen Fry, 67, was among those who paid tribute to the late comedian Tony Slattery. He expressed his grief at the loss of his friend, who he said had been “torn” from us.
Sharing a throwback photo on Instagramwrote the former QI presenter: “So very sad to have lost the wonderful Tony Slattery, just about the gentlest, sweetest soul I’ve ever known. Not to mention a screamingly funny and deeply talented wit and clown.”
He continued: “A cruel irony that fate would take him from us just when he had really begun to emerge from his lifelong struggle with so many dark demons. He had started live ‘evenings with’ and his own podcast series.
“Wonderful this last year at least for him to find to his happy surprise that he was still remembered and held in great affection.
“While it’s good news that he was able to overcome and abstain, the damage could have already been done. Especially with cocaine because it has an effect on the cardiovascular system through the heart.”
