In thinking that cocaine use in London appears to be commonplace these days?!

[Fifilikes]

I’m a 30 year old professional working in finance and moved to the city for a new opportunity a couple of years ago. During that time, I’ve lived in two different professional house shares where I’ve been fortunate enough to be introduced to friends of friends through my housemates and I’ve also met and socialised with lots of people I’ve met through my now husband and also through my work for a large financial services company.

I’ve met a huge range of people, aged between mid 20’s through to mid 40’s, all of whom are relatively successful and well educated. The common denominator is that all of them is that they use cocaine recreationally, whether it be on nights out or nights in over drinks after a long week at work etc. DH and I are very sociable and normally drink alcohol frequently on such occasions but nothing more. Yet pretty much everyone else I’ve met thinks cocaine use is as casual as buying a bottle of wine on a Friday and will talk about it or offer it around without any thought, which still after two years I find quite shocking.

It has me wondering whether cocaine use amongst professionals in the city really is commonplace and widely socially acceptable now, or is it simply that somehow DH and I have both been introduced to the wrong social groups and what we’re seeing to be the ‘norm’ simply isn’t?!

Me and my friends don’t do it and others are often surprised to hear this. Like others have said, it’s rife, has been for years and you’d be surprised about who does do it.

I don't touch it but super normal. Often taken by those who complain about gang crime in their neighbourhood 🙄

As others have said, it’s been commonplace in London within certain sectors for decades.

It’s how commonly used cocaine is everywhere else now that’s new.

I lived in London in my 20’s and 30’s (90’s/00’s) and it wasn’t normal in our circles - media, finance, law, govt etc. My old boss used to have a problem but had cleaned up by the noughties. Maybe I didn’t ever see it because I was always vocally anti drugs having been heavily involved in that lifestyle as a teen and realising early on that it was a horrible way to live. I don’t know why people do it especially if they have kids. It absolutely is not harmless for all the reasons mentioned above.

It's in many places not just London. Coke is the latest "acceptable" drug in the same way that cannabis was the illegal-but-popular drug in the 90s/00s. It seems especially popular with people in their 30s and 40s, usually well-educated and in good jobs.

But it's not called "wanker powder" for nothing.

You are correct. Most people I know either do it regularly or have at least tried it. I am very tired of it though.

Meh. I’m sure there are plenty of users but look, I’ve worked in the city for 20 years. Sure there have been people I’ve suspected using drugs. But if you think a la the Daily Mail that every toilet in the square mile and canary wharf is full of people snorting white powder 24-7 you’re going to be very disappointed with the boring reality.

Anyone who snorts coke in front of colleagues is putting themselves in a potentially very fraught situation.

The Tory London mayoral candidate was interviewed a couple of days ago saying he wants companies do do random cocaine testing to tackle this issue (though he also said the mayor doesn't actually have any power to enforce this).

I've not come across it much, but that might be because I'm very anti-cocaine, because users are basically turning a blind eye to the connection to organised crime, exploitation of the vulnerable and environmental destruction in the countries of origin. I hope the discussion around the BLM campaign might open people's eyes more to this hypocrisy, because it has certainly triggered debate about issues like the clothing industry and its reliance on exploitation of people and resources in developing countries.

Yes it seems like it’s everywhere now! I know people who take it every time they go on a night out and they’re awake all night and the following day. Some of them take so much that their jaws start moving at really odd angles.
I’ve seen people take it in wetherspoons 😂 goodness knows why you’d need it there haha

I don't know why you are surprised. It's rife everywhere. Not everyone chooses to use, but plenty of middle aged couples with teens might occasionally. What's the issue? Why the shock?

Fucking hate coke! It's a total wankers drug.

I live in a wealthy area with lots of aspirational big detached houses, family homes, professionals. (Not a stealth boast, live in a 2 bedroom flat, so just live near, not part of.) My neighbour has a relative who is a uber driver and he refuses to take people to certain "nice" streets. When I asked why, he was being hired by people who he realised were drug dealers, they would ask him to wait and they would do drop offs in the lovely houses. It is the professionals that is driving the county lines gangs and associated crime.

Husband works in the city, definitely large scale use.

When I used to work in a hospital (as admin), I was surprised that many of my colleagues used it. Then I was surprised that some of the trainer doctors I used to hang around joined in at the office party.

London professional here (law), never seen it myself in 15 years of work/socialising with other people in same/similar. Might be the circles you move in?

Not commonplace in my social circle. I'm in a professional job and I'm in my 40s. I remember seeing it used once on a night out in my 20s. Even though I was very sociable in my 20s and hung up with lots of people who worked in the city.

I hope the discussion around the BLM campaign might open people's eyes more to this hypocrisy, because it has certainly triggered debate about issues like the clothing industry and its reliance on exploitation of people and resources in developing countries.

It's weird that all the talk around BLM didn't mention about drug use.

What's the issue? Why the shock?

The issue is the connection between those harmless middle class professionals snorting the odd line of coke at the weekend and the misery of those at the bottom of the pile whether it's teens involved in county lines gangs, rising knife crime, etc or the supply chain overseas.

It's not an issue if you can ignore it or don't care, but I think many cocaine users will also be fretting over the number of teenage boys murdered in London, or shocked when vulnerable young women are caught drug smuggling at Heathrow, or when whole countries are destabilised by drug cartels.

It's not an issue if you can ignore it or don't care, but I think many cocaine users will also be fretting over the number of teenage boys murdered in London, or shocked when vulnerable young women are caught drug smuggling at Heathrow, or when whole countries are destabilised by drug cartels.

Exactly this. It's amazing how many otherwise decent and intelligent people sometimes can't put two and two together.

Not in my circle- early thirties, worked in finance in London since I was 18- never witnessed it, I know none of my close friends use it. I’m sure it happens but I wouldn’t say it’s unavoidable.

@BallOfString I agree with you.

The people I have had the opportunity to meet who sell the stuff on the street (met via my job) are often from poor, desperate backgrounds. Their lives are firmly controlled by 'higher ups' who almost never get caught. One boy from Albania, I'll never forget. Out of the blue, this boy was ordered to leave his family and very thin support networks to go 'country' (outside London) to sell Class A drugs. When I met him, he'd been selling weed and was absolutely harmless as a person. Quiet, gentle but due to his family's immigration status he couldn't go to college or get a job. He wasn't illegal, but he was only 17 and his parents could not afford much for him. He would not even entertain quitting because he/his family would be threatened (he had already moved out of the family home and seeing his mum disappointed in him hurt him deeply... But she could not help him either). The last thing he said to me (before leaving and asking me to pray for him) was that he'd probably never see his family again, or live much longer.

He opened my eyes. The distribution network only seems to be detrimental to the very bottom of the hierarchy. Meanwhile, the users probably think very little about how their drug gets to them.

I mean... yeah, it’s widely used, but are you honestly surprised by that?

I think it always has been. Not just in London. I was living in another big city twenty years ago and everyone was at it then too.

It’s so completely normal it’s actually really hard to find social groups without it, it has been this way for decades and I’m in the middle of nowhere about 80 miles from London.

Well as someone from the London bar scene I can almost guarantee you the person serving you food or drinks is high on cocaine. In one of the bars I worked, the manager was a dealer. I was on it too, at the time - it made work into a party every night we were all so off our heads.
Horrible stuff, when i came out of my twenties with a bit more empathy and learnt the truth about it I was ashamed.

@Kab30 Can I ask why it's a bain to your workplace/business?

Is it (Im guessing)

The state of the toilets
The behaviour of the person doing it
The danger of the reputation of the pub

I havn't done it, Ive seen people do it (years ago, on a pool table )

It does look pretty nasty.

Thanks!