Bestselling Scottish author Iain Banks has decided to end years of experimentation with illegal drugs, contending that the work he produced under the influence of LSD, cocaine, and marijuana was ‘rubbish’. Famous for ‘The Wasp Factory’ and ‘The Crow Road’, Iain Banks is known for excessive drinking and prevalent drug use. He excuses his behaviour under the premise that he hoped that alcohol and hallucinogens would improve his writing, inspiring the futuristic worlds which provide the settings for his science-fiction novels. He says, ‘I’m happy to be on record that I’ve tried assiduously over the years to improve my writing via all sorts of alternatives. You think it’s better at the time, and you read it next morning and its rubbish. Purely in terms of the general reading public and my fans, I’ve selflessly devoted many days, weeks and months of trying to improve my writing through artificial means.’

Banks has been an outspoken critic of attempts to restrict drug use. ‘It does look like I’m calling off all the avenues of fun’, he said. ‘Certainly my views on the illegality of drugs haven’t changed in the least. The whole of society and the government keep telling us drugs are bad. If they are so bloody horrible, why do so many people take them?’ Along with drugs, Banks is a huge advocate of booze-culture. He once ran for the rectorship of Edinburgh University on a ‘Drunken Bastard party’ ticket. He came fifth, behind a stuffed toy.