Veteran performer Dame Elaine Paige has revealed she spent years battling an addiction to sleeping pills – calling it her “Judy Garland syndrome” – and only kicked the habit after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dame Elaine Paige spent years battling an addiction to sleeping pills – calling it her “Judy Garland syndrome”.
The 78-year-old West End star has admitted she became hooked on medication after spending years struggling to sleep because of the late hours she works when she’s onstage – comparing it to the addiction issues suffered by late legend Judy Garland – however, Elaine managed to kick the bad habit after the COVID-19 pandemic.
She told The Sunday Times Magazine: “I go to sleep but seem to wake up after four hours. For many years in the theatre I lived on sleeping pills, otherwise you’re wired until 2am after a show.
“I called it my Judy Garland syndrome. They’re dreadful things to become addicted to, which I was. But since the pandemic I’ve managed to get off them and will not take one again.
“I say to myself that even if I don’t sleep well, I’ll be fine the next day. I’m not ready to take afternoon naps yet.”
Elaine went on to reveal she hasn’t performed onstage since the pandemic hit and she misses her former career “terribly”.
She added: “I’ve not performed since the first Covid lockdown and miss the community terribly, as well as being creative. The whole thrust of your life is what you do and when suddenly it’s not there any more, it’s a huge loss.”
Elaine is widely known as the First Lady of British Musical Theatre and she previously explained how the moniker came her way.
The singer suggested the phrase stemmed from a performance at the White House in the 80s.
She told Broadway.com: “I must have done a few musicals before it was applied! I can’t actually remember where it comes from, but, of course, it’s very flattering. “I did a performance during the 1980s for President Ronald Reagan at the White House, so it might well have been a phrase the press applied after that event, since it’s the kind of language we’re used to hearing coming out of the White House.
“I’ve been told I have appeared in more musicals – well over 20 – than anyone else of my generation, so whatever its origins, it’s an extraordinary moniker.”
Dame Elaine Paige battled addiction to sleeping pills
