drinking in London is an old story

I'm reading Old London Bridge at the minute, it is a history of the bridge and its inhabitants over the 900 odd years of its life. It was the longest inhabited bridge in Europe until about 1760, then it was turned into a lump of concrete about 30-40 years ago, to widen it.
It is quite an enjoyable book, but I noticed one quote today which caught my eye "There were only two plagues . . . the immoderate drinking of fools and the fires", William FitzStephen, 1170AD, eight hundred and thirty years ago and only the fires have died down. Twenty four hour licensing will hopefully change the drinking culture in the UK, but I think it will be a slow change, given the history.