Shameless' Tina Malone says she used to drink 40 gin and tonics a day

Shameless' Tina Malone has admitted she used to drink 40 gin and tonics a day.

Malone, 60, played Mimi Maguire in the hit Channel 4 show and is also known for her role as Mo McGee in Brookside.

The star has spoke openly about her problems with alcohol in the past.

Speaking to Closer magazine back in 2014, Malone explained: "In those days a typical night out for me would start off with a bottle of champagne at home while I was getting ready, then some spirits. I could put away 30 or 40 gin and tonics no trouble, half a bottle of brandy, a bottle of champagne, ten bottles of Beck’s…"

The actor also revealed that she dabbled with drugs, and it wasn't until she was admitted to hospital due to her diabetes that she realised she had a problem.

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"In 1995, rehearsing for panto, I got a wake-up call. I was playing Baroness Hardup in Cinderella at the Regent Theatre in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, staying at the Holiday Inn," she recalled.

"I started to have a panic attack. It came out of nowhere and I couldn’t get my breath. My heart was racing, I felt dreadful, ready to collapse.

"I rang reception and asked them to call a doctor. Someone came up to check on me, found me on the floor and dialled 999. The paramedics arrived, gave me oxygen and got me on a stretcher."

After that, the doctors made her aware she had a serious problem with alcohol, something the Shameless star admitted to struggling to come to terms with.

She added: "My idea of an alcoholic was an unkempt bloke on a park bench with a can of Special Brew. That wasn’t me. When I said as much, he laughed, told me I was being ridiculous."

Malone is now 25 years sober and she certainly doesn't miss the bottle.

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In a recent interview with Closer magazine, she said: "My biggest vice was always the drink and now I'm 25 year sober. Do I miss it? No I don't."

Elsewhere in the interview, Malone spoke about her wild sex life with her hubby Paul Chase.

"Sex just gets better as you get older, I'm 60, so I'm comfortable with myself," she said.

"I like to think I'm accomplished at most things in my life now - and that applies in the bedroom too! Paul and I still have so much passion, after 13 years you know each other so well.

"He still gives me butterflies!"