Alan Carr’s ex reveals all about couple’s friendship with Adele and booze crisis that saw him ‘drink cell toilet water’
ALAN Carr’s ex-husband has told his side of their story in an explosive new memoir — lifting the lid on boozy nights with Adele and his own battles with drink and drugs.
Paul Drayton describes life inside a high-profile relationship and devotes an entire chapter to superstar singer Adele, who lived near the former couple.
Paul, 54, and Alan, 50, met in 2008 and tied the knot ten years later in a lavish Los Angeles ceremony officiated by Adele.
Recalling their nights together, Paul writes: “Most evenings we’d just get a Thai takeaway. Adele would turn up with a cheap bottle of wine, which we sank in a second, and moved on to our supplies.”
Paul also claims he helped introduce Adele to her first husband Simon Konecki, the father of her son Angelo, 13.
He writes: “She was always very honest and open with me and Alan because she knew she could trust us.”
Paul also reveals Adele played them her chart-topping album 30 before its release.
And he fondly recalls “the time I took her to TK Maxx for the first time”, adding: “She couldn’t believe it as we combed through the rails hunting for bargains.”
Elsewhere in the memoir, Paul speaks candidly about his struggles with alcohol and drugs.
He writes: “Alcohol and drugs became my crutch. They slowed my brain down, quietened the constant noise in my head, and evened me out so I felt like I was on the same level as everyone else.”
Paul also lays bare how his relationship with Alan began, and how it developed.
He recalls: “Sexy? Sure. Marriage material? Possibly. Did I know at that moment I’d marry him one day? Of course not. But something clicked. He was unlike anyone I’d ever met.”
The pair later ended up in a nightclub — leaving Paul to wake the following morning thinking: “Oh my God, I’d been snogging Alan Carr.”
Paul went on: “There were moments when I genuinely thought we could’ve been the next Morecambe and Wise.”
But he says life with Alan soon “took over”, adding: “My dream of acting — well, it would have to wait.”
Opening up about living in the comedian’s shadow, Paul writes: “From the outside, it looked like I had it all. Alan in the spotlight, me in the wings. The ‘plus one’. The ‘kept man’… in designer sunglasses, holding the dogs and carrying the bags.
“But I wasn’t just standing there. I was driving the car, clearing the path, fixing the messes. Planning our exits like we were royalty.
“I’d like to think I was his ride or die — as he was mine, or at least, I bloody tried.
“I’ve been the clown, the cleaner, the carer and the chaos. I’ve fallen apart, pulled myself back together, and ended up in a police cell drinking toilet water out of a kid’s party cup.”
Paul was handed a 14-week prison sentence in January 2022 after admitting drink-driving.
He spent two nights in custody before successfully appealing the sentence, which was replaced with a 12-week term suspended for two years.
Alan and Paul announced their separation that month after 13 years together. The couple have remained friends following their split.
Speaking previously, Alan has said: “We’re still always going to be friends because we’ve been through so much together.”
Ride Or Die Trying by Paul Drayton is out now.