NZ comedians share advice and personal stories on quitting smoking

Whanganui comedian Kajun Brooking, who features in the new podcast series Comedians Quitting, says smoking took a massive toll on his family.

A Whanganui-founded podcast is using laughter to help people on their journey to quit smoking.

New Zealand comedian Josh Thomson, who features in the new podcast series Comedians Quitting, said his method of giving up was “pretty weird”.

“I had a really, really big night and I drank a lot, smoked a lot, and I made sure there was no ciggies left before I passed out,” Thomson said.

“When I woke up in the morning I didn’t get out of bed for the entire day, but I made it to 6pm without a cigarette.

“I kind of broke that cycle.”

Thomson said the first day was the hardest, and the day after that was “still a bit s***”.

“But if you can make it to three days, you can do it.”

Whanganui-based comedian Kajun Brooking has only smoked one time in his life but it was enough to put him off.

“I went down to the local park in Flaxmere where we used to hang out, and two of my cousins had stolen some cigarettes from my auntie.

New Zealand comedian Josh Thomson features in the new podcast series Comedians Quitting.

“They were seasoned vets so they were puffing on that cigarette like there was no tomorrow.”

Nine-year-old Brooking took a “massive drag” and coughed his lungs out.

“I was on my knees, my eyes were tearing up and my cousins were pissing themselves laughing.

“When I came to, I gave them both a hiding.”

After his first bad experience and through watching money go out the door towards feeding his family’s habit, Brooking didn’t take up smoking.

“My parents, my grandparents, aunties and uncles – everybody smoked.

“I realised from a young age because we grew up pōhara [poor], we had no money, but somehow my family always had money for cigarettes.

“We never had chocolate biscuits but we seemed to have a lot of cigarettes.”

Thomson said a good tip was to break up with friends who smoked – for a few months.

“I just said ‘I’m not going to hang out with you’ and my health is more important - if they’re your friends they should understand.”

Data from Smokefree New Zealand and Te Whatu Ora Whanganui shows that nationally smoking prevalence has continued to decline across all ethnic groups. The overall smoking rate among adults in New Zealand was around 8.3% in 2023.

In 2022/23, the daily smoking rate for Māori adults was 17.1%, while for Pacific adults it was 6.4%. Māori were 3.3 times as likely to be current smokers than non-Māori/non-Pacific individuals.

Brooking said smoking had taken a massive toll on his family.

“Especially when it comes to my people, Māori and Pacific Islanders ... it’s had a bigger effect on our communities and I’ve seen it growing up.

“My biggest advice would be: quit smoking for your family. For the kids, the generations that come after that.”

Comedians Quitting launches on July 26 from Whanganui Stop Smoking Service and Hello Comedy and will be available through the link on the Whanganui Stop Smoking Service Facebook page, or on Instagram: @Smokefreewhanganui .

Listeners can enter the draw to win a pair of Bose earbuds by filling out a survey after listening to each episode.

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.