UK public service announcements sure like to use their shock value as an educational tactic. First we were treated to the teen pregnancy prevention ad that had us watching a screaming schoolgirl give birth on a playground filled with students, and now we have a new one discouraging binge drinking by exposing a sober nation to the disgusting antics of their drunken selves.

In the ad, a bloke demonstrates vomiting, fighting, urinating in public, going home with strangers, and yelling insults at women. Watching him do this in the middle of the day, stone-cold sober, makes drunken behavior seem even more intolerable. The British government wants viewers to think the same and eventually realize that they shouldn't get so drunk that they do things they wouldn't otherwise. Let's just hope the viewers aren't at home boozing, since they'd probably find it funny or think it's some sort of check-list of things to do next time they're out.

To find out more about the UK's binge drinking problem, and how alcohol consumption differs between the sexes, read more.

One in four Brits drinks enough to put his or her health at risk. While sloshed ladies seem to get a lot of attention in the UK press, men make up two-thirds of the people admitted to the hospital for an alcohol related problem. The rate is similar across the pond, where American men are twice as likely as American women to binge drink.

Do you think ads like the one above can make people think twice about excessive alcohol consumption and its consequences?