Do you think the younger generation (ages say 18-early 30s) go out drinking alot less than the older generation did years ago?

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Cremilar@reddit

Yes. When I 1st learned to drive, I would drive through the town centre on a friday/Saturday night. I'd have to be going slow and looking around so I didn't run someone over (usually drunk people just walking into the road). The pavements would be full of people. 20 years later I can now drive the same area on a Friday/Saturday night at full speed with the worry of hitting anyone bclecsuse there barely is anyone

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cactusdan94@reddit (OP)

The classic "townie lap" as we call if

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Careful-Swimmer-2658@reddit

I've no evidence beyond personal experience but young people don't seem to have anywhere near as much fun as we had in the 80s and 90s. Even worse, (and again no evidence beyond internet comments) they seem to have a puritanical streak that disapproves of anything vaguely hedonistic or enjoyable. I feel sorry for them. Youth doesn't last long and you don't get a do-over.

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BringBackFatMac@reddit

I think this question gets asked weekly, and gets the following answers: “In my 20s and everyone I know either drinks every weekend or not at all” “With the price of pints these days a lot of folk just stay at home and drink” “Kids are more health conscious these days, but plenty still go out drinking” Any other avid AskUK users can let me know if I’ve missed any of the common ones.

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DegenerateWins@reddit

Yes, people do drink less for sure, plenty of reasons: More ways to communicate - the rise of the internet and phones. More things to do - Plenty of new entertainment since the 80s. Driving - drink driving was far more common, tie that in with lots of local pubs closing leading to far more people needing to drive to a pub, it has just become more of a hassle. Health - Drinking health implications spread far more nowadays. Throw in the general shift in how couples are now and how men are much more involved with kids and generally just family life rather than coming home from work then straight to the pub. Plenty more reasons that I’m sure will crop up in the thread

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windol1@reddit

Money is also quite the factor, people don't have the money to frequently go out drinking like they used to. I mean, Friday night used to be the night you'd frequently see people wobbling around, now maybe once a month it seems to happen.

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DegenerateWins@reddit

Yup! Back in uni I would get absolutely ruined for the price of a single pint nowadays. And low end salaries pretty much the same.

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mdmnl@reddit

>Driving - drink driving was far more common, tie that in with lots of local pubs closing leading to far more people needing to drive to a pub, it has just become more of a hassle. That's an interesting aspect I hadn't considered. Public transport is poorer now where I live and my family lives too - definitely more of an effort to go out to the pub for an evening.

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MegaMolehill@reddit

I turned 18 towards the end of the 90s and it was peak binge drinking. All you can drink for £15 in one of the night clubs. Tequila bar at 50p a shot. During A levels I could only afford to go out once a week but at uni we were out 2-4 times a week. Student bar was four pints for a fiver and a local pub was a pound a shot which was great for London. The whole goal was to get as drunk as possible. I’m glad things have reduced. Hate to think what I did to my liver back then!

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P8L8@reddit

That’s crazy didn’t even know that was a thing as someone in their early 20’s. Normally pay £6 a pint and £4 a shot in a club.

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GloatingSwine@reddit

Now ask him what a pint cost back then.

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citizen2211994@reddit

Yes, but that’s because of a lot of different factors. The main two for me are price and he we interact. It’s expensive to go on a night out and now you can hang out with friends online - video games. Saying that lots of younger people do still go out or they drink at home (house parties)

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matthew12327@reddit

This question gets asked on this subreddit every half an hour

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

Middle aged men are getting weirdly possessive over people choosing to do other things over going to the pub.

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DarkusHydranoid@reddit

"Are... less youngsters smoking? Why?"

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Thesunismexico@reddit

There was no way to socialise with others unless you met up in person, or an amateur radio user. Now there are myriad ways to engage with others without having to meet in person.

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Living_Carpets@reddit

Exactly, it was impossible to communicate or do anything much except in person till about 2005 either. Pre adequate broadband coverage we had the phone, dial up (if you were technically literate enough) or letters. People even put ads in magazines. Or you went out.

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mogwaihelper@reddit

>Exactly, it was impossible to communicate or do anything much except in person till about 2005 either. You do understand we had telephones before then...? The great innovation was answering machines with remote functions in the early 90's. You could phone up the machine and it would play your messages. Made life so much easier.

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Living_Carpets@reddit

I have been a tax paying adult since 1992 so yes, I do understand. But if you spent your life on the phone, it wasn't much fun and it cost you. We had payphones at my uni and be fucked if we were spending drink money on that much.

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Fizzbuzz420@reddit

From my circle it hasn't been the same since covid. We got older so that's always a factor but less inclined to just go to the pub we actually arrange more varied activities. Don't know what current 18 to early 20s mostly like to do if any different.

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Max_Level_Nerd@reddit

doesn't help the pubs keep closing down. growing up we had 3 within 10mins walk now the nearest one is 3miles away. same with my granparents village. use to be 3 pubs and now it's just the one that gets new management every 2 years. I do feel sorry for these pub landlords they tried everything to make the business viable but when your average customer is 70+ that customer base gets smaller every year.

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

I think people are starting to realise there’s more to life than a pub.

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EstatePinguino@reddit

Like chatting shite on Reddit?

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

Lol, do I sense defensiveness? Relax mate. If people realise that they much prefer that than sitting in a pub, then it’s something people need to respect. It’s getting quite funny seeing how possessive pub fans are about people having other things to do. You are still allowed to go, bro!

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EstatePinguino@reddit

No, not defensive. Just think it’s weird to suggest doing something is a waste of time whilst sitting on Reddit wasting time.

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

When did anyone mention ’wasting time’ on this thread? If anything, my point is simply that people are choosing to waste time on other things. There, feel a bit better?

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Banditofbingofame@reddit

It's not there has been a shift to something much better. Instead of pubs it's sitting at home doom scrolling and messaging mates with netflix on the background for many. There is a physical connection that people have been missing out on that hasn't been replaced. I'm not saying it should be the pub but I'm not sure we are there yet.

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

It’s very easy to jump to that conclusion. I don’t totally disagree because, of course, there are those people now. But I do wonder if those types would have gone to the pub anyway. Sure, I can only speak for what I see. But what I see are kids hanging around each other’s homes more. Evening sports is a thing now, like 5-a-side football places. Clubbing age seems to have gone up. Comedy clubs. Concerts. Cheap short holidays. Etc etc.

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Banditofbingofame@reddit

Those were all things before.

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Automatic_String_594@reddit

Hence the ‘people are starting to realise’ part.

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Banditofbingofame@reddit

I'm not sure on your point then

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EstatePinguino@reddit

It’s a fiver a pint, and everything else in life is also bloody expensive. The younger generations can’t afford to drink like their parents did

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ZealousidealJob6917@reddit

Yes. Me and my friends (all mid 20's Men) still meet in the pub 2-4 times per week, they enjoy drinking while I drink pop. It all comes down to the fact that some people don't enjoy alcohol, as it makes the next day a bit shit. Even without a hangover, you still feel tired and sluggish. I only drink on special occasions such as close friends birthdays.

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Objective_Truth_4943@reddit

The relationship with alcohol/ going out is different. I see three separate groups for this though... The older group (18 pre 2010s) went out more frequently but binged less. It was the main form of socialisation in the absence of social media as a core part of daily life (sure social media is older but iPhone only came out in '07 and Internet wasn't what it is now). The mid group (18 between 2010 and covid) went out less but binged hard. Many still do by all accounts. Drinking is a specific activity, not just a small part of a social opportunity, and therefore gets taken to extremes. The younger group (18 post-covid) go out drinking less, but may drink at home. The relationship between alcohol and being in public has all but been severed by first contact likely being made in small circles either with family or a tight group of friends. I don't know how much the dynamic with the younger group will change now, death of pubs and newer young people looking to replicate what came before them will likely be factors... but we'll have to wait and see.

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newnortherner21@reddit

Lunchtime drinking other than with Sunday lunch or before a football match seems to have declined even more than average. I have come across pubs in some smaller towns or rural areas that shut some lunchtimes, one local to me does not open on a Monday.

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ArstotzkaHero@reddit

Genuinely not sure how poor people afford their addictions. Either that or it's a chicken and egg situation where they're poor because of the addiction.

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AncientNortherner@reddit

Your dad isn't wrong, in that what described was fairly normal. However, I think it's a good thing that people drink less now than we did then. There are whole new ways to socialise that we didn't have and lots of non alcohol related opportunity.

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buck_fastard@reddit

There seems to be an enormous shift towards people becoming more remote in general. It's not just not drinking, it's not doing *anything* much while still managing to maintain friendships through social media, messenger apps and online gaming. I actually think this is making most people feel more lonely while being 'in touch' more than ever. There are some plus sides though, like fewer gangs of teenagers hanging outside shops and street corners. Used to be a big problem even 15-20 years ago.

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JD-Is-Cool@reddit

Weird, we were just having this discussion with my mate's dad the other week haha. He said him and his mates went out every Friday and Saturday, me and my friends only go out one day or the other and not every week 😭. Went clubbing all the time too apparently, me and my mates haven't been in ages. People definitely drunk more back then.

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tastyreg@reddit

Going from an admittedly small analysis of me and my step-daughter, I was drinking on weekends to a greater or lesser extent from the age of 15... she (and her friends) barely leave the house and just talk to each other online.

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