Why men have moments of madness

On the face of it, it's hard to understand why a man like Antony Worrall Thompson would want to put his career and reputation on the line by shoplifting from his local Tesco.

The Ready, Steady, Cook star was caught on CCTV camera stealing cheese and wine, according to reports. The 60-year-old was cautioned by local police on Friday.

• On MSN TV: Worrall Thompson seeking treatment

Needless to say, he quickly apologised. "I am so sorry for all my recent stupid and irresponsible actions," said Worrall Thompson in a statement on Monday. "I am of course devastated for my family and friends, whom I've let down and will seek the treatment that is clearly needed.

"I am not the first, and I certainly won't be the last person to do something without rhyme or reason - what went through my head, only time will tell."

• On MSN Him: 10 humblest apologies by men

Not the first

Of course, Worrall Thompson certainly isn't the first person - nor indeed the first celebrity - to be caught with a bag full of stolen groceries.

In 1994, for instance, Richard Madeley (of Richard and Judy fame) was arrested for failing to pay for champagne and other items on two separate occasions at a Tesco supermarket in Manchester. He was acquitted of shoplifting charges after citing lapses of memory.

And it's not just men. Winona Ryder is now as well known for stealing $5,000 worth of clothes from a Beverly Hills store as any of her movies.

The only questions is, why do they do it? Why do men, in particular, experience these moments of madness?

• On Bing: celebrity shoplifting

Not about the money

If one thing is clear, it's that Worrall Thompson's pilfering isn't about money. The celebrity chef may not have had the best time recently in terms of his restaurant business, but he can certainly afford to pay for a block of cheddar. Nevertheless, therapist and hypnotherapist Alice Pinion says that compulsive stealing can often occur when things start going wrong for successful men.

"From a therapist point of view it's about control," she says. "Successful celebrity men often have a high desire for control. If parts of their life seem to be slipping out of control, stealing something and getting away with it can appear to put a little bit of that control back."

These men often have big egos that need regular feeding, she adds. In the good times, they can be fed by success. When things start going even a little wrong (Worrall Thompson, for example, had to close four restaurants in 2009) a successful shoplifting trip - in those with a predisposition to it - can help bolster a fragile personality. If they get away with it, it's a little victory in a world that seems to be going awry.

"Of course it's risky, but that's part of the appeal," says Pinion. "The last thing a celebrity chef should be doing is stealing cheese and wine from the supermarket. But if they get away with it, it's a buzz."

Consultant chartered psychologist Graham Price, author of 'What Is, Is! The Power of Positive Acceptance', agrees, adding that it's not just business or work failures that can lead men to put careers and reputations on the line by stealing things they can afford to buy.

"Usually they need the buzz to compensate for some deficiency in their lives," he says. "They might be in an unhappy relationship, be stressed at work, suffer from anxiety, depression or low self-esteem, be lonely, have experienced a failure or feel inadequate for any number of reasons."

But surely they could avoid helping themselves to the camembert if they wanted to? It's not that easy, say experts. If you have the compulsion to steal, it can be a bit like the pink elephant syndrome. "Tell somebody not to think about pink elephants and - guess what? - they'll think about pink elephants," says Alice Pinion. "Shoplifting is something a celebrity really shouldn't do, so they may end up thinking about it all the time."

Oh, and if you keep getting away with it, you're likely to keep doing it. "Repeated shoplifting can mean you develop an increased need for that buzz, resulting in yet more shoplifting until an addiction eventually develops," says Graham Price.

• On MSN Him: Men and addiction: know the facts

Different behaviours

Shoplifting creates a buzz and a sense of control when control in other areas seems to be slipping away. But it's not the only behaviour to reap such rewards, and Pinion says other moments of madness can be characterised in the same way.

Worrall Thompson may have stolen cheese from his local Tesco, but other successful men facing difficult times may cheat on their wives, or drive too quickly down the M6, or take illegal drugs.

"It's all thrill-seeking behaviour," she says. "And it all offers to feed the ego and put back a little bit of control."

Sleeping with an attractive woman - especially one who's not your wife - may convince a celebrity (temporarily at least) they've still got it, even if their career has hit a rocky patch. Similarly, doing 100mph in your sports car seems to show a mastery of circumstance that may be lacking from other areas of life - at least until you write it off.

• On MSN Him: History's notorious womanisers

This can be true even if, by the standards of us normal men, you still seem wealthy and successful. "They're often all or nothing people," says Pinion. "They're not happy just ticking along. They may even be perfectionists, and perfectionists are rarely happy."

Putting a stop to it

According to Pinion, it's not difficult to treat a shoplifting compulsion. Often, a sufferer simply needs to be taught to be kinder to himself, and to focus on his many successes rather than his occasional mistakes. If money is not the issue, happy people are unlikely to steal.

• On MSN Him: Toughest endurance challenges known to man

As for Worrall Thompson, Graham Price thinks that - if his stealing is a recent development - his current humiliation may be enough to stop it. "His arrest and caution may well be the shock he needs to ensure it isn't repeated," he says. And before we take too much pleasure in his predicament, it's worth remembering that - whether it's cheating, driving too fast, binge eating or something else - many of us have experienced our own moments of madness, even if they don't make it to the front page.

• Join us on Facebook
• Follow MSN Him on Twitter