A homeless street drinker dies in a shop doorway one night. Could it have been you? Fate or Chance is the life of Pete from rural respectability to chronic alcohol addiction homelessness and death in 1997.To some he would be a lowlife worthy only of contempt, to others he was a human being worthy of respect. What took him there? Was it fate or chance? It's not a tale for those wanting a happy ending but of a life worthy of mention. Set in Leicester, Manchester and Sheffield against the background of social change and industrial decline that match the decline in Pete's life, the novel illustrates the causes of alcohol addiction and homelessness. John Chalmers lived in Moss Side for three years during the clearance era, worked in the probation service for 26 years and was involved with homelessness for 28 years including managing a wet day centre in Leicester for homeless street drinkers for 14 years.