7 Years 107 days - Core Memory7 Years 107 days - Core Memory
I'm Quitting Alcohol
David Boyle reflects on his final night in Cork, sharing how comedy, family time and a long Irish stay have created a new core memory for his kids and himself. He mixes raw honesty about unprocessed life events with humour and gratitude for the friends and stages that support his sober life.
7:53•29 Aug 2026
Core Memories, Cork Comedy and Life After Booze
Episode Overview
- Returning to stand-up in Cork has reignited David Boyle’s passion for comedy, helped by full creative freedom at City Limits Comedy Club.
- The Irish trip is framed as a core memory for his children, filled with simple joys like horse riding, rivers, and café hot chocolates.
- Boyle reflects on his backlog of unprocessed experiences, from moving countries to living through COVID and early childhood.
- He expresses deep gratitude to friends who housed and supported his family, especially during health issues.
- Humour and honesty run through his account, showing that recovery can be messy, exhausting and still deeply meaningful.
“"This will end up being a core memory for my kids... and also myself for very different reasons, extremely different fucking reasons."”
What remarkable journeys have people faced head-on against addiction? This short, punchy episode of "I'm Quitting Alcohol" drops in on comedian David Boyle as he hits a big emotional milestone: the final night of a long stay in Cork, Ireland. Across just a few minutes, you'll hear Boyle talk about comedy, family, and the strange admin of processing an entire life after booze.
City Limits Comedy Club in Cork City gets a heartfelt shout-out, with Boyle saying it "has lit the comedy fire again" and praising owner Brian for giving him "full creative freedom" on stage. For anyone in recovery who wonders if joy and passion come back, this is a reassuring snapshot that they can. The episode also leans into the idea of "core memories".
Boyle reflects on how this Irish trip is likely to stick in his kids' minds forever – wrangling local kids, horse riding, wandering into his mate’s café for hot chocolates – and connects it to his own childhood memory of visiting his auntie Linda in New Zealand. At the same time, he’s honest about how much emotional backlog is still waiting: moving to the US, living in India, COVID, and even early childhood, all needing serious reflection.
There’s plenty of typical Boyle humour too: joking about mispronouncing Kinsale, teasing fellow comedian Richie Shahey’s "shithole" place, and acknowledging the sheer exhaustion of travelling with family. Underneath the jokes is deep gratitude for friends who housed and supported his family through illness and chaos.
Anyone wrestling with sobriety, big life changes, or just missing the creative spark might find this episode a comforting reminder that recovery isn’t neat or tidy – but it can be rich, funny, family-centred and full of new core memories. What core memories are you building now that alcohol isn’t running the show?
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