7 Years 93 days - Special One7 Years 93 days - Special One
I'm Quitting Alcohol
Comedian David Boyle talks about feeling alive on stage again in Cork, using stand-up and honest self-assessment to stay grounded in sobriety. He reflects on ego, new material, and why continuing comedy feels essential to his survival.
7:14•16 Aug 2026
Comedy, Cork Crowds and Staying Sober One Gig at a Time
Episode Overview
- A great performance can inflate the ego, so staying grounded is crucial to avoid crashing at the next attempt.
- Listening back to recordings of performances provides a reality check and helps refine material.
- The real test of a joke comes on the second, third and fourth outings, once the initial excitement has faded.
- Committing to doing at least one new bit every time on stage pushes growth and keeps creativity alive.
- Maintaining a meaningful pursuit, like comedy, can be a powerful motivator to stay alive and alcohol-free.
“"I'm doing comedy now because if I stop I'm going to die."”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? For comedian David Boyle, the answer today is stand-up comedy, Irish crowds, and a hard look at his own ego. This short, punchy episode of *I'm Quitting Alcohol* drops you straight into Boyle’s life at 7 years and 93 days off the booze, as he talks about how getting back on stage in Cork has made him feel "alive for the first time" after a rough patch.
He shares the buzz of smashing a set with all-new material and the dangerous mental spiral that can follow: "you start thinking fuck am I the special one ... and then you get shown pretty quickly that you're not the special one." Anyone who’s tried to rebuild their life after drinking will recognise the theme: how to stay grounded when things start going well.
Boyle breaks down his own trap of letting a good gig inflate his head, then bombing the next one. This time, he fights back by forcing himself to listen to his set recording, using it as a reality check and a tool to tighten his jokes. You’ll hear him talk through testing new material, the difference between first-night adrenaline and solid writing, and his personal rule to do a new bit every time he hits the stage.
There’s plenty of swearing, plenty of honesty, and that raw mix of comedy and survival that regulars come for. Underneath the laughs, there’s a serious line that hits hard: Boyle says he’s "doing comedy now because if I stop I'm going to die." For anyone using creativity, discipline, or routine to stay sober, this episode might feel uncomfortably familiar in all the right ways. What’s your version of the thing you *have* to keep doing to stay alive and alcohol-free?
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