Calum Best:‘I’m always going to be a bit of rebel - I’ll always be my father’s son’

Once famed for his party-boy antics, Calum Best has been on a long journey of self-improvement. He tells us why he’s never felt better.
Calum BestCalum Best
Calum Best

Around a decade ago, Calum Best decided to turn his life around.

For years following the death, in 2005, of his world-famous footballing father George Best, who’d battled alcoholism, the reality TV star struggled with his own demons, admitting to ‘wild’ times when he was drinking, taking drugs and partying to excess.

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In previous interviews, Best talked of the moment, aged 28, when his mother, Angie Best, was so concerned for her son that she returned from America to live in the UK - recalling how “we were walking down the river.

Calum Best with his mother Angie Best and father George Best in 1984Calum Best with his mother Angie Best and father George Best in 1984
Calum Best with his mother Angie Best and father George Best in 1984

‘‘She tried to put her arm in mine and I felt really uncomfortable. I was ashamed of what I got up to.

‘‘The demon that was drinking and doing drugs every day for years had taken over my brain.

‘‘ Luckily, I switched out of it and thought: ‘This is not the way for me’.”

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Now 37, Best is a passionate advocate for health and wellbeing and living his best life.

Calum Best with a waxwork of his late father George BestCalum Best with a waxwork of his late father George Best
Calum Best with a waxwork of his late father George Best

Here, he opens up about what makes him tick, how he feared his life would end prematurely during his troubled years, and what drives him on...

Are you in a good place in your life right now?

“Totally, I feel like I’m going from strength to strength.

‘‘My pursuit is health, fitness and happiness, and my lifestyle is about training so I can improve my mind and body.

“I’ve literally spent 10 years evolving and bettering myself, getting away from all the nasty stuff that was in my life and focusing instead on the good stuff and being in touch with my spiritual side,

“There were points where I was fearing for the dark side.

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‘‘ I remember sitting with my mum at one point when I was in my late-20s and telling her I really was fearing for myself, and didn’t know what age I was going to make it to.

‘‘To say to your mother, ‘I don’t know how much longer I’ve got’ - the poor woman must have been mortified.

“Luckily, I snapped myself out of it - I know how that story ends and it’s not a nice one - and so I chose the goodness path.

‘‘I’m always going to have a bit of rebel in me, I’ll always be my father’s son in ways - but at the same time, I’m very much my mum’s son, and she’s been a health nut for as long as I can remember.”

How would you describe yourself now?

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“I’m a people person, quite positive, quite cheeky, and a bit of a smart-arse at times!

‘‘I’m not saying I’m any sort of guru or a saint, because I’m not, I’m still a youngish lad, I still enjoy this life, I’m not going down a Mother Teresa path, but now I’m just trying to do what is best for me and others.

“I don’t feel I will slip back to those old ways.

‘‘I enjoy waking up without a hangover, I enjoy going to the gym and being productive. Why the hell would I go back to not doing any of those things?”

What were the key turning points for you?

“Apart from my mum coming back to the UK - I’d not been in a family environment for years, which I needed - the starting point for me believing in how the universe works was when I was at an all-time low years back, and I said to myself: ‘I want to change’.

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“As soon as I legitimately meant it and had conviction in my head, the universe gave me an opportunity. Making the documentary, Brought Up By Booze (2009), where I talked about my feelings of having an alcoholic parent, was healing and helped me with the grieving process, and I’ve connected with charities and am a patron of Nacoa (The National Association for Children of Alcoholics).

“Nowadays, I can talk about the passionate story of going from the dark times to the light times, and how I helped myself through it with the aim to try to help others.

‘‘My mindfulness journal, BestMeLife Journal (bestmelife.co), which includes tips and my favourite sayings and others’ words of wisdom, is designed to help people create a happy and harmonious environment for themselves and keep a daily focus on their goals. I write my journal daily and it really helps me.”

You’ve been on shows like Love Island and Celebrity Big Brother - would you do another reality TV show?

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“Never say never. For me, it was a learning process. We know a lot of reality TV is car crash television, and some of it is actually terrible to watch. But I had to earn a living and it gave me an opportunity to express what I was feeling.

‘‘I’ve been on TV for 20 years, so if the right thing came along, who knows?”

Do you feel grown up?

“There’s no doubt I feel more grown up than I did before.

‘‘I lacked a lot of self- belief for years because of all the s**t I went through, not really knowing what my role was in the world, or what I was meant to be doing.

‘‘I feel more confident and comfortable nowadays.

‘‘ As you get older, you care less about what people think, and you care more about what you’ve got to do to make yourself feel right.

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“I grew up in the spotlight, and all the nightlife and the naughty side I experienced when I was younger was well documented.

‘‘Even three years ago, I would never have been able to talk about health and wellbeing because I would have worried people would go, ‘What’s he going on about, we know him for his other antics!’

‘‘but now I have the confidence to speak about those sort of things.”