Galliano: I´d Be Dead If I´d Stayed At Dior

John Galliano has revealed that he believes that he would not have survived for much longer following his arrest in 2011 if he had continued working at Dior. The designer - who was dismissed by the company after being charged with anti semitism - spoke at a Jewish educational event organised by the Central, New West End and Western Marble Arch Synagogues in London late last week.

"I am an alcoholic. I am an addict," he said, The Guardian reports. "This is in no way an excuse. We alcoholics and we addicts are not responsible for our disease. However, I do take complete responsibility for my recovery and making amends. I get a daily reprieve from this disease and that comes from total abstinence." He admitted he "wasn't living" in the time leading up to his breakdown, adding when asked where he would be if he hadn't been sacked: "I think I would be dead."

The designer sat alongside Rabbi Barry Marcus of the Central Synagogue during the talk - a key figure in his rehabilitation - and spoke about coming to terms with his own behaviour in order to move forward.

"I used to blame everyone for what happened, but now I bear no resentment. I have finally come to terms with what happened and what was my part in it," Galliano said, revealing that he was now on a "spiritual path". "God is in the driving seat, not me. Before it was self-will, but now it is God's will," he said, adding that he spoke to God "every day".

Rabbi Marcus called on the audience to search their own faith before judging the designer, who now helms Margiela.

"That is not the Jewish way. We should show a little graciousness. I want to talk about forgiveness," Marcus said. "I am asking because most people, apart from the angels among us, most of us have done something we regret."