THE MIDDLE MAN BETWEEN CALM AND STORM: Pre-drinking in a nutshell

60-70% of 18-23 year-olds are choosing to load up on booze before nights in order to save money, and because they prefer the feeling of "control", according to researchers at Plymouth University. This is particularly relevant to student life because of the obvious and well-documented budgetary restraints put upon students, coupled with prevelant night out culture that goes hand-in-hand with university .

Considering this, The 9am Lecture decided try and find out how and why students pre-drink.. After pouring through all of my contacts trying to find students who actually partake in pre-drinking (turns out it's almost all of them, who'd have known?), I asked a few how they like to go about it.

For example, Michael, a 22 year old from the Midlands, swears by Tesco Everyday Value Vodka, as "it's cheap, and you can mix it with more or less anything so you can give it whatever flavour you want." He also adds, "sometimes for a nice treat I like to add Skittles, for some really fancy flavours and colours." When quizzed on why he feels pre-drinkings are necessary, Michael unsurprisingly points to the cost benefits: "It would just be silly to only drink once you're out. The prices are so much higher, I'm pretty sure most of the drinks are watered down, and you'd end up spending half your night queueing at the bar, an often nightmarish blend of being squashed and ignored, instead of actually having fun."

What Michael touches on when noting that he worries his drinks may be watered down raised as an interesting point, linking back to "control". When you order a drink at a bar, particularly in loud, dimly lit clubs, it's hard to be certain exactly what you're getting. In constract, while pre-drinking you're pouring the drink yourself, and have control of the size and measures. I ask Hayley, a Merseyside born Sheffield Hallam student, about this and she concurs: "If I can I'll try and avoid buying many drinks while I'm out. It sounds bad but a perfect pre-drinks would see me drunk enough to last the whole night!" Dr Adrian Barton, who led the aforementioned study on the matter, believes that while monetary concerns are certainly a factor, there is another that contributes to the pre-drinking phenomenon. “What we found was that they are under quite a lot of pressure to have a good time. Beyond price, young people seemingly need alcohol to cope when going out and many of the young respondents prefer the comfort and safety drinking with people known to them brings.”

Readers can find more information advice on how to ensure they drink responsibly by visiting www.drinkaware.co.uk