Latitude Re-spin: Alcohol Change UK & Lucy SpragganLatitude Re-spin: Alcohol Change UK & Lucy Spraggan
Alcohol Free Life - Janey Lee Grace
Janey Lee Grace revisits clips from Latitude festival with Richard Piper and Lucy Spraggan, sharing her own long-term sober reflections and practical tips for enjoying festivals alcohol-free. The episode focuses on ending alcohol harm, cultural shifts around drinking, and using music and community to support a purposeful, connected life without alcohol.
23:33•24 Jul 2026
Latitude Re-spin: Festivals, Freedom and Sober Anthems
Episode Overview
- Sobriety can evolve from confusion and emotional difficulty into complete freedom from desire to drink.
- Alcohol Change UK focuses on research, policy, culture, behaviour change and specialist services to reduce alcohol harm.
- Recognising society as alco-centric helps shift blame away from individuals and towards wider systems and marketing.
- Successful sober festival trips rely on honest decisions, clear communication, and practical prep such as bringing alcohol-free drinks.
- Planning positive activities for the day after an event reinforces that alcohol-free choices lead to feeling better and more proud of yourself.
“"I am proof that you can literally be free from the alcohol trap, have no desire whatsoever to drink toxic liquid."”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? This Latitude re-spin gives you a mix of festival vibes, charity insight and sober music inspiration, all wrapped in a friendly, zero-judgement chat. Janey Lee Grace kicks things off by sharing how sobriety has shifted from raw early struggles to genuine freedom.
She describes walking into a film screening where "there was not the slightest drop of desire" to drink, even though in the past she "would have been into glass three before the screening even started". It’s a reassuring reminder that cravings can fade more than you might think. You’ll then hear a short festival panel clip with Richard Piper from Alcohol Change UK.
He explains their charity mission "to end alcohol harm" while still "without ending the fun", and breaks down five strands of their work: building solid knowledge through research, pushing for better government policy, changing a culture of "sober shaming", supporting behaviour change through tools like Try Dry and Dry January, and providing specialist services for people with severe alcohol problems. His description of society as "fundamentally alco-centric" may make you look twice at how normalised drinking has become.
Janey follows up with practical tips for doing festivals alcohol-free. It’s all about prep: deciding honestly whether you’re ready to go, telling friends you’re not drinking (or using a harmless excuse if that feels easier), checking for low and no bars, and bringing your own alcohol-free favourites so "you’re not standing in the middle of a field" surrounded by queues and triggers with nothing in your hand.
She urges you to "keep the ritual, change the ingredients" and plan something lovely for the next morning while everyone else is hungover. Finally, there’s a short clip with singer-songwriter Lucy Spraggan, who wrote her song "Sober" in her first week alcohol-free and now has six years under her belt. She talks about using music as an outlet and says her main goal is "relatability", giving anyone on this journey another voice to feel connected to.
If festivals, purpose and long-term freedom from alcohol are on your mind, could this upbeat re-spin be the nudge you need?
Do you want to link to this podcast?
Get the buttons here!
More From This Show
The latest episodes from the same podcast.