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Betting addict Willie Thorne sits at a casino machine dubbed the “crack cocaine” of gambling and raises fears he is back to his bad old ways.

The sorry image shows bankrupt Thorne, 62, playing a game which allows bets of up to £750.

It follows live play on a roulette table, ­potentially exposing punters to huge losses in minutes.

Thorne, who has gambling debts of £1million, took a punt while in Sheffield covering the World Snooker Championships for the BBC.

He dashed from the Crucible Theatre to a nearby casino and was seen playing one of the Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs), which earned the “cocaine” tag for being so addictive.

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

On another visit he was seen with his wife – who has been violently threatened in the past by men who say the ex-snooker pro owes them cash.

The star appeared to leave empty-handed on both visits. One onlooker said: “He looked really downcast... it was a sad sight to see.”

Read more:Willie Thorne fails to cope on the streets for BBC Sport Relief documentary

Our pictures will concern fans of Thorne, who will help present Sunday’s live coverage of the world snooker final.

They will also dismay those owed money by the star who, after the BBC backed him, vowed to clear his debts as soon as possible.

And his plight will reignite the debate about the dangers of FOBTs which have pushed many addicts over the edge to suicide.

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

At his lowest ebb, Thorne himself ­contemplated taking his own life over his debts.

Many MPs want the machines outlawed completely due to the increasing number of people becoming addicted to them.

Britain already has 593,000 “problem gamblers”.

Read more:Cancer-stricken Willie Thorne may be recovering from bankruptcy for years

Thorne twice visited a casino just a short walk from the Crucible and the hotel where he is staying.

Last Wednesday he turned up through the doors of the Genting Casino alone.

A fellow gambler said: “They had the snooker on the big screens and he arrived about 15 or 20 minutes after the match had ended.

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

“He went straight to the ­electronic roulette machine and must have been on there for half an hour.

"He was totally focused on the game. When he finished he just got up, shrugged and left without collecting any winnings. He looked a little downcast.”

The following night Thorne was back, this time joined by wife Jill.

After grabbing a bite to eat at the venue’s Chinese restaurant the couple sat side-by-side on the electronic roulette machines.

They spent half an hour watching the wheel spin as they placed their bets. Eventually they headed off having had no luck.

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Punters can wage a number of bets on the roulette machines ranging from 50p to £50 on a single number coming up, at odds of 36-1.

The maximum bet is £750 on red or black.

Last year, in an interview with the Sunday Mirror, Thorne bravely talked about his ­addiction and how he owed £1million to people who loaned him money to gamble.

He insisted he had not placed a bet in three months. But he told how battling the condition left him suffering depression and insomnia.

He is also undergoing treatment for prostate cancer .

(Image: Bob Thomas/Getty Images)

Fighting back tears as he told how his life had unravelled, Thorne told how things got so bad thugs even turned up at his home demanding £300,000 they claimed they were owed.

They later ­threatened to cut off his wife’s fingers for her diamond rings if he didn’t pay up.

The couple had to clear their home of all their possessions, including Thorne’s sporting trophies, to prevent bailiffs from taking them – leaving only a bed, sofa and a chair behind.

Thorne once hid away in a hotel with a knife and considered taking his life . He was only rescued when Jill tracked him down and called the police.

“I couldn’t see a way out,” he said. “I’d caused so much grief to so many people. It’s so cowardly.

"I’ve three children, two stepchildren and grandchildren and life in a nice house with a loving wife... yet I couldn’t see a way through it.”

Detailing the extent of his debts he went on: “I borrowed money off 35 people and owe almost £1million.

“I put too much money on and I kept borrowing money to try and get it back.

"Snooker players have a lot of free time. I think the biggest thing wrong with this country is that you get credit.

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

"I would ring up and ask for £1,000 to put on a horse. By the time I got through to the operator I was borrowing £5,000.”

Revealing he was virtually penniless, Thorne added: “People must think I am the guy off the TV who has loads of money.

"But nothing could be further from the truth. The house I live in is ­mortgaged up to the hilt and the cars are on lease.”

Thorne has previously said he started gambling while playing snooker.

After he retired in 2002 the former World No 7 began to accept money from lenders who knew he could not resist chasing a big win.

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

In the past he has asked snooker pals Dennis Taylor and John Virgo for cash.

He also tapped up Match Of The Day host Gary Lineker, a pal from Willie’s native Leicester.

In his 2011 autobiography, Taking A Punt On My Life, Thorne spoke of his love of horse racing and how the habit had left him with mounting debts.

He suffered a mild stroke in 2010 which he believes may have been brought on partly by stress from gambling.

Thorne, who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2007, did manage to get his betting under control for a period.

But when his mother Nancy died in 2013, he fell back into gambling.

He went from staking around £1,000 to betting up to £20,000 on a single race.

“Mum was my rock and everything to me,” he said.

“When she went I wanted to win enough money to get away from how I was feeling... to win enough to live happily ever after.”

Thorne has spoken about his latest casino visits. He said the stakes were low – and insisted he had his demons under control.

As he prepared for his latest stint as a TV pundit, he said: “It’s not a big deal.

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"It was only 20 quid and I was just passing some time. There’s no problem at all.”

But even as he spoke campaigners urged greater controls on fixed odds machines, on which punters can play a range of games including roulette and poker.

Betting shops are allowed up to four FOBTs with a delay of just 20 seconds between bets.

Figures obtained by the Fairer Gambling group reveal one bookie alone makes more than £1,000 per week per machine.

(Image: PA)

Across the country there are in excess of 33,000 FOBTs and last year they raked in £1.7billion.

Numerous calls have been made to cut the maximum stake to £2.

Councillor Simon Blackburn, chair of the Local Government Association’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said: “The harm and anti-social behaviour they can cause has become an issue of growing national concern.”

Lib Dem peer Lord Tim Clement-Jones added: “FOBTs are highly addictive and have been shown to destroy lives. It is disgraceful the Government refuses to act.”

Addicts can be helped says Dr Mark Griffiths

Gambling addicts make up just 0.1 per cent of the population – but it’s a habit which compromises relationships, jobs, education and social lives.

Addicts experience the same things other addicts do, including withdrawal symptoms, relapse, mood modification, cravings and loss of control.

Brain imaging studies have shown that individuals with gambling addictions have diminished ventral striatal activation – the part of the brain involved in both emotional and motivation aspects of behaviour.

Thus, gambling becomes the most important thing in an addict’s life and becomes an activity that they will do to the neglect of everything else.

They will become totally preoccupied with gambling and, even when they are not betting, they are always thinking about the next time they will be having a flutter.

The NHS Choices website offers a number of routes to help addicts. It states: “There is evidence that gambling can be successfully treated in the same way as other addictions.” Go to nhs.uk and search for “gambling addiction”.