Daniel Radcliffe: I drank so much that I'd black out

By Ben Todd

Last updated at 8:09 AM on 3rd February 2012

Daniel Radcliffe has admitted that his alcohol problem caused him to black out every time he drank.

Asked if he had fun drunken nights out before giving up alcohol in August 2010, the Harry Potter star said: Yeah, but I cant remember them.

Seriously, in the last three years of drinking I blacked out nearly every time. Blacking out was my thing.

Daniel Radcliffe celebrating his 21st birthday. He has admitted that his alcohol problem caused him to 'black out' every time he drank

The 22-year-old added that he was so concerned with his public behaviour when drunk that he became a recluse at 20, boozing alone at home.

The drinking was unhealthy and damaging to my body and my social life. Thats beyond question, he said in an interview.

I was living in constant fear of who Id meet, what I might have said to them, what I might have done with them, so Id stay in my apartment for days and drink alone.

Radcliffe, pictured in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II, said he was so concerned with his public behaviour when drunk that he became 'a recluse at 20'

Radcliffe admitted last year that he quit drinking after he became 'so reliant on [alcohol] to enjoy stuff'

I was a recluse at 20. It was pathetic it wasnt me. Im a fun, polite person and it turned me into a rude bore.

For a long time people were saying to me, We think you have a problem, but in the end I had to come to the realisation myself.

Daniel Radcliffe when he first became Harry Potter. His drinking became a problem after he turned 18

Radcliffes drinking became an issue after he turned 18.

With his problem worsening, he spoke to Gary Oldman, who played Sirius Black in the Potter films and battled alcoholism himself in the 1990s.

Radcliffe said: I did talk to him about it once. I didnt say I had a problem -because I didnt think I did at that point but I told him I shared that mentality he had for actively seeking out chaos.

He just said, You cant keep doing this. Youve got too much to lose. And that really went in. But not even he could have stopped me alone I had to stop myself.

And stopping has shown me a world of happiness that I didnt think was possible.

Radcliffe admitted last year that he quit drinking after he became so reliant on [alcohol] to enjoy stuff.

At the time he said: As much as I would love to be a person that goes to parties and has a couple of drinks and has a nice time, that doesnt work for me. I do that very unsuccessfully.

His latest comments are the most candid he has been about his drink problem.