‘I’d wake up in the lock-up’: Hughesy tells of past as a big boozer

Comedy star Dave Hughes has opened up to his I’m a Celebrity castmates about hitting the booze heavily in his youth ... and what changed when he quit.

Australian comedy great Dave Hughes has credited giving up booze as the moment his stand-up career took off.

In his youth Hughes, 54, was a binge drinker who routinely wrote himself off.

His turning point came at Christmas in 1992.

“I have not had an alcoholic drink for 31 years,” Hughes tells his fellow campmates on I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here on Sunday.

Dave Hughes says his fortunes turned around after he quit drinking. Picture: Alex Coppel

“I just loved getting drunk — hammered

“I was bad as a kid, just too much. I would wake up .. ‘Where am I?’

“I would wake up in the lock-up and stuff. I was never violent, I was just paralytic on the street and (would) get put in the back of a divvy van.”

Hughes started to get control of his boozing in November 1992.

“It was November, I’d been on a bender for quite a while, and I said I would stop drinking until Christmas, so it was like six weeks, maybe,” he said.

Hughesy on I’m a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here.

“I had the six weeks and I got to Christmas Eve, which was always a huge night of drinking for me; get mad drunk and try to roll up to Christmas Day and it was a good tradition.

“That is the day, 1992 Christmas Eve that I decided, ‘No, I am not drinking anymore,’ and I stopped and I have not started since.

“My fortunes turned around pretty quick actually. I felt better straight away.

“I seemed to get on the right track and my comedy career started pretty much straight after I stopped drinking.

“I have not toasted any of my comedy successes with a drink in all that time.”

Hughes said heavy drinking was commonplace in the community 30 years ago.

“It is a different era now,” he said.

“The drinking culture has gone away to a big degree, but each to their own.”

I’m A Celebrity has changed its voting system this year with viewers asked to vote on the five celebrities who have received the least ‘save’ votes.

Votes can be cast at 10play.com.au/vote.

I’m A Celebrity… airs Sundays at 7pm and Monday – Thursday at 7.30pm on 10.