Escaping The Grip of Porn & Sex Addiction. School of Rock Bottom 38: Mark Shenton

Theatre critic Mark Shenton discovered his sexuality via a porn mag in Soho aged 16, that quickly turned into an addiction alongside sex addiction which escalated to him hiring porn stars by the hour. Now 12 years into his recovery, Mark found a way out of a living hell that ended in a deep, dark depression and a stark feeling of hopelessness. Mark Shenton is a very well known theatre critic but today he shows us his deeply personal and human side in, perhaps, my most raw and astoundingly honest interview yet. I cannot thank you enough for being so deeply candid to help people. Legend ❤️ More on Mark - Mark Shenton has been a full-blown theatre addict since the age of 14. He later found a way to monetise it — and get free tickets as well — by becoming a full-time professional theatre critic and commentator.  Born and raised in South Africa, he emigrated with his parents to England when he was 16, and attended Cambridge University where he read law (but spent most of his time reviewing and producing student theatre).  He later became editor of arts and entertainment at the Press Association and spent a year working in the offices of producer Cameron Mackintosh. In 2002 he went freelance and became a full-time writer, separately (and sometimes simultaneously) acting as theatre critic for WhatsOnStage, The Stage (where he was also an associate editor), the Sunday Express and londontheatre.co.uk for the next two decades. He also regularly broadcast on BBC London (radio and TV), as well as contributing to other outlets including LBC, Times Radio and Talk Radio. In 2022 he moved to West Sussex with his husband, and now writes a regular theatre newsletter which is published on his own website, ShentonStage.com. Topics - 0:00 Intro 3:45 Mark's rock bottom 8:35 Porn addiction 12:30 Porn addiction turns to sex addiction 24:00 Addiction to hiring porn stars 26:30 The consequences & sex addiction turns to love addiction 29:00 Why the addiction for Mark? 32:50 Is spirituality needed to recover? 36:50 My name's Mark and I'm a theatre addict 39:17 Actors mustn't read reviews! 47:25 How to heal the "empty" feeling? For anyone struggling with these topics Mark suggests reaching out to - SLAA - https://slaauk.org This Podcast is not for profit but my goal is to break even. To help me make more please donate here. Thank you! https://bit.ly/3kSucAs Follow Mark X - https://x.com/ShentonStage Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/shentonstage Follow Oliver Instagram - https://bit.ly/3IemHLY Facebook - http://bit.ly/3w8S1Gx TikTok - https://bit.ly/3YGLsYm LinkedIn - http://bit.ly/3kp4ymC Threads - https://bit.ly/3svw7yL X - http://bit.ly/3GQYj2l Listen or watch on: (please subscribe/follow & rate/review) Spotify - https://bit.ly/3WCXK5s YouTube - https://bit.ly/3Ytj4f7 Apple - https://apple.co/3PajZvQ