Tackling my demons

Ex-footballer Paul Merson opens up about his addiction problems in a candid documentary

- HANNAH DAVIES, IAN MACEWAN, SEAN MARLAND

NEW FACTUAL

Paul Merson: Football, Gambling & Me

Monday, BBC1 HD, 9pm

Paul Merson won league titles with Arsenal, played for England at the 1998 World Cup, and earned millions of pounds during his career as a footballer. But his life has been blighted by gambling addiction.

Last year, during lockdown, the 53-year-old hit rock bottom after losing the money he’d saved to buy a house for his family.