SAS Australia‘s Chief Instructor Ant Middleton has opened up about his chequered past in a rare, emotional interview.
The former UK Special Forces soldier recently appeared on The Matt Haycox Show podcast for a chat in which he discussed his time in the military, his stint in prison, and the effect drinking culture has had on him as an ex-army man.
In the episode, Ant commended his wife, Emilie, for sticking by him despite living a “selfish” existence in the past.
“My wife has been incredibly supportive. Through my life and career choices, I’ve been very, very selfish,” he confessed. “I look back on my priorities and they were all wrong.
“My priorities were the military and my mates.”
He then opened up about how Emilie remained in his corner during his time in prison, where he served four months for assaulting two police officers in 2014 outside a nightclub.
He was initially sentenced to 14 months before being released on good behaviour.
“When I went to prison, and when I came out, the military wasn’t there. My mates weren’t there. The only person that was there as the one common denominator through the majority of my life, was my wife now for 19 years, Emilie,” Ant said.
“She was the constant. She’s the backbone of the family. She holds the fort.”
Ant Middleton reveals ‘reality check’ that made him ‘cut back’ on drinking
The SAS Australia head honcho also discussed the drinking culture within the military, revealing he decided to cut back on alcohol after a wake-up call at a friend’s funeral.
“There was one moment when I was at a funeral burying a friend that had died. I was that drunk I was asking where he was. I didn’t even realise that I was at his funeral,” Ant said.
“That moment was such a reality check that the alcohol had started to take charge here… so that’s when I knew from then on I had to cut back on alcohol.”
The candid chat comes as the SAS Australia 2023 winners were revealed, with Tim Robards and Matthew Mitcham the only two recruits to pass selection.
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