29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Snooker legend John Higgins gave up alcohol after embarrassing taxi incident
Snooker legend John Higgins gave up alcohol after embarrassing taxi incident
2025 World Snooker Championship hopeful John Higgins decided to go teetotal after a photograph was taken of the snooker icon snoozing in the back of a cab back in 2018
John Higgins has been alcohol-free for years
(Image: 2024 Getty Images )
Snooker legend John Higgins gave up alcohol after he was photographed sleeping in the back of a taxi.
The Wizard of Wishaw, 49, had been out with friends after the Northern Ireland Open tournament in Belfast back in 2018. Higgins had downed pints in a bar and caught a taxi back to his hotel room.
Cab driver James Crawford claimed he picked up the four-time world champion at the city's Merchant Hotel, with the Scot propped up against the railings outside. They would reportedly make the short journey to a nearby Hilton hotel, with a friend of Higgins asking the driver to ensure he got to his hotel safely.
Crawford claimed Higgins started chanting: "Up the Celts! Up the Celts!" after which he was told to stop singing. The cabbie said: "He stopped straight away and I thought, 'That was easier than I expected it to be', but when I turned around he was out of it."
He tried to wake up the snooker icon at his hotel as the night unravelled into chaos, having accused Higgins of not paying the fare. The driver alleged: "I told him we'd arrived at his hotel and that the fare was a fiver, but he just turned around and said you're getting f*** all from me.
"My mate came to see what was going on and I was trying to calm the situation down and explain who he was - but the next minute he was out of the car and bolting down the street back towards the town."
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The cab driver claimed he went inside Higgins' hotel and left a note with the receptionist to demand payment for the cab ride, with a snap of Higgins asleep in the taxi later emerging online.
Higgins, embarrassed by the image, decided to go teetotal after the incident. The world No. 3 said in 2023: "I've not had a drink for five or six years.
"You think back and you realise you don't need it to enjoy yourself. You can't go back in life, but there are parties and stuff where you had a great time, but you don't remember them.
"I was over in Belfast and I was enjoying some pints with some mates I hadn't seen for a couple of years, and before you know it, you're in the back of the taxi and you've fallen asleep before you're dropped off, and a guy's taking a picture of you. It's things like that that make you think, 'It's no use, it's no use whatsoever."
Speaking on the Talking Snooker podcast, he added: "I've never had it that bad where I had to go to meetings, but I realised it's not for me and I've never touched it since.
"It's not a part of my life now. I packed it on the head that day and never touched it again. You can never say never, but I don't think I will touch it again."
Taxi driver James Crawford accused Higgins of not paying his fare
(Image: Daily Record )
Higgins, who has won more than 30 tournaments and was first crowned world champion in 1998, takes on fellow veteran Mark Williams on Tuesday in the World Snooker Championship quarter-finals. The two 'Class of 92' members clash for the sixth time at the Crucible Theatre, where they have a combined seven victories.
The Wizard is appearing in his fourth successive Crucible quarter-final – and 19th overall – after edging past Xiao Guodong in the second round. Higgins led 12-10 but wasted two match-winning opportunities as Xiao punished him to level at 12-12, before winning the deciding frame.
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Williams, meanwhile, defeated Hossein Vafaei 13-10 in the second round, sealing his victory with a stunning break of 115. The 50-year-old now has an eighth appearance in the one-table setup in his sights and needs to be at his best against a resurgent Higgins.
One of 2019 World Champion Judd Trump and 2023 World Champion Luca Brecel will await the winner in the semi-finals. The match gets underway at 10am (BST) on Tuesday with the opening eight frames. The action resumes at 7pm (BST) with a further eight, before playing to a conclusion at 10am (BST) on Wednesday.
