Phil Collins details life-threatening alcoholism, organ failure

Phil Collins nearly died from alcoholism that left him hospitalized for seven months from November 2023, he told the Sunday Times in an interview published on August 3, 2026.

The 75-year-old musician said his drinking escalated after he stopped taking Antabuse, a medication that induces illness when alcohol is consumed. He drank wine at breakfast, and the heavy intake severely damaged his pancreas and kidneys.

Doctors considered whether to keep him on life support. “My kidneys were packing up, my organs were just seizing up. People were coming to say goodbye,” Collins said, adding that he was unaware of the visits at the time. He has not had a drink since and considers himself lucky to have survived.

Collins previously spoke about alcohol abuse after his 2006 divorce from Orianne Cevey. In a 2015 Rolling Stone interview, he said he “went through a few bits of darkness; drinking too much” and that it “almost killed me,” but added he had been sober for three years at that point.

The musician has faced other health challenges, including neck and spine surgeries that prevent him from playing drums. During the 2021 Genesis reunion tour, his role was limited to vocals. He announced a diabetes diagnosis in 2016.

Ahead of the Genesis concerts, he told the Guardian that performing seated changed things but the audience still responded.

Collins is one of Britain’s most commercially successful musicians, with five consecutive UK No. 1 albums with Genesis in the 1980s and early 1990s, and four solo UK No. 1 albums featuring hits like “Against All Odds” and “In the Air Tonight.” His most recent solo album, “Going Back,” was released in 2010. After a four-year retirement, he returned in 2015, telling Rolling Stone he wanted his children to see him perform.