Rolling Stone Keith Richards finally tries to quit smoking aged 75 after branding habit ‘useless’
Keith, who has been warned over onstage smoking, admitted “nicotine was harder to quit than heroin"
ROLLING Stone Keith Richards is finally trying to quit smoking at the age of 75.
The Jumping Jack Flash guitarist is famous for chewing a cigarette while performing — but now wants to kick the “useless habit”.
Keith, who has been warned over onstage smoking, admitted “nicotine was harder to quit than heroin”.
He said: “Quitting heroin is like hell, but it’s a short hell. I mean, the actual process.
“Cigarettes are just always there, and you’ve always done it.
“I just pick ’em up and light ’em up without thinking about it.
“But lately in fact, spread the news, I’ve managed to cut it down by a substantial amount every day, and I’m still working on it.
“Because I realised I don’t need it. I realised it’s just a useless habit. But hey, when you’re 75, habits are pretty ingrained.”
He quit heroin in 1978 after his fifth arrest, and cocaine in 2006 after he fell from a tree and needed brain surgery.
Keith also claimed his New Year’s resolution was to cut down on hard liquor, after December was “one long party”. The star — who guest edits this month’s MOJO Magazine — added: “I’ve knocked the hard stuff on the head.
“I have a little wine with meals, and a Guinness or a beer or two, but otherwise...no. It’s like heroin — the experiment is over.
“Mind you, if I meet you in a bar and you say, ‘Do you want a drink?’ — I wouldn’t turn it down! I’m not a puritan in these matters. It’s just that it’s not on the daily menu.”
Keith last year flouted the strict no- smoking rule at the London Stadium in Stratford by lighting up on stage.
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