The one thing that made Simon Pegg quit drinking

Actors, musicians and some of the most successful people in Hollywood are increasingly turning their back on alcohol. Pegg has followed suit

Simon Pegg

Simon Pegg has joined a long list of high-profile people who have quit alcohol for various reasons.

Actors, musicians and some of the most successful figures in Hollywood are increasingly turning their back on alcohol for health, career or even financial reasons.

Those who have say the effects are palpable. Many often report feeling less depressed, more focused and more determined, all useful results in such competitive industries. The trend is growing among millennials too, with a survey of people aged under 35 showing seventy-five per cent drink only in moderation on nights out. The Instagram generation is choosing clean-eating over hell-raising even in Britain, a place known for its waterholes and drinking culture.

Pegg, 46, stopped drinking six years ago. For Pegg, removing alcohol from his diet was a way of shaping up for Mission Impossible III and improving his self-confidence.

The writer and actor told The Times: “I got to a point in my late thirties where I was a bit overweight, I didn’t have a lot of self-esteem, I was unfit, and I thought, ‘This isn’t a way forward for me.’”

Pegg said the birth of his daughter was another motivating factor. “Parenthood changed me enormously. Everything made sense suddenly. The universe clicked into place. I realised what made me happy, and taking drinking out of the equation helped with that, having a child helped with that, moving out of London helped with that.”

His comments come amid a warning from health experts after a direct link between drinking alcohol and cancer was discovered in a review of existing research.