Comedian Suffers Nerve Damage in Surfing Accident

The comedian said it was the ‘worst pain of my life.’

Australian comedian and radio host Dave “Hughesy” Hughes was hospitalized after he dislocated his shoulder while surfing at a Queensland beach on New Year’s Eve. The 53-year-old comedian said on Instagram that it was his “least sober NYE in 30+ years” after requiring morphine and painkillers due to the “worst pain of my life.”

Surgical intervention is likely to be required for the comedian, who said he sustained “9 out of 10 level nerve damage.” “Shout out to wife, @surfersparadiseslsc, and GC medical professionals for their much needed help!” Hughes expressed in a post that included three photos.

Hughes appears to be in great pain in these pictures, as shoulder injuries can often take up to 12 weeks to heal. TV personality Osher Gunsberg, fellow comic Merrick Watts, and podcaster Yvie Jones were among the hundreds of well-wishers.

Hughes received a message from Gunsberg: “Oh no Dave! That’s horrible. If you need surgery (and I hope you don’t) I could narrate it for you with my @bondirescuetv Voice if you like?”

Watts told Hughes to “hang on to that whistle, I might be able to use it!” Jones called Hughes’ wife a “legend” for taking pictures of him on his hospital bed. Meanwhile, comedian Lehmo asked, “Is there footage of you falling off the board?”

In the days immediately following his surgery, Hughes called into his radio show Hughesy, Ed, and Erin on 2Day FM from the hospital bed in order to share a surprising story he was told about Russell Crowe while heavily medicated, reported the Daily Mail. He said he was given some celebrity gossip by his doctor, Greg Hoy, who is referred to as “the surgeon to the stars.”

“He did Warnie back in the day and he did Russell Crowe. Apparently, Greg even features in the Cinderella Man behind-the-scenes footage on DVD,” he explained. “Russell wanted his phone with him even though he was sedated, and his phone rang while he was being carved up. The surgeon answered it and spoke to a very, very famous answered.”

Knowing that Hughes was medicated, the studio team was eager to discover who it was and tried to use his condition to gain information from him. However, Hughes said he wasn’t allowed to reveal who it was, but he promised to reveal it to his co-hosts after the show. Currently, Hughes is a presenter on Masked Singer Australia and is set to continue his comedy tour with some added material on Jan. 5.