Daniel Radcliffe says 'Harry Potter' turned him into an alcoholic in candid interview

Actor Daniel Radcliffe has revealed that playing the role of Harry Potter caused him to turn to drink into an in a candid new interview. Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, the actor made the admission to host Lauren Laverne.

The 30-year-old said: "If I went out and if I got drunk, I'd suddenly be aware of there being interest in that because it's not just a drunk guy. It's 'Oh, Harry Potter's getting drunk in the bar."

Cast your mind back to Radcliffe's first-ever movie trailer: 

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In the interview, the actor also addressed how people, more generally, viewed him as a child star, saying that playing Harry Potter "carried some kind of interest for people and also a slightly mocking interest."

He added: "It's inherently funny for people." Radcliffe then revealed that his way of coping with the situation was drinking to excess. He said: "I did a lot of that for a few years."

In the video below, Radcliffe discusses his terrifying dead body stunt double:

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The actor, who began to play the boy wizard when he was just 11 years old, said: "A lot of drinking that happened towards the end of Potter and for a little bit after it finished, it was panic, a little bit not knowing what to do next - not being comfortable enough in who I was to remain sober."

This is not the first time that Radcliffe, who has been sober for a decade, has spoken about the detrimental effects of being one of the most famous child stars in the world. He also spoke about it in an interview with Off Camera last year.

He said: "In my case, the quickest way to forget about the fact that you're being watched is to get very drunk.

"And then as you get very drunk, you become aware that 'Oh, people are watching more now because now I'm getting very drunk, so I should probably drink more to ignore that more.'"

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Radcliffe also opened up about the pressures of being a child star and how this can affect people when they grow up and outgrow the roles that made them famous.

He said: "They are by that point the breadwinner for their family. So multiple people are now reliant on them continuing to do this job and they feel pressured into it and forced into it.

"I think that's why you can see people go to drink and drugs because it is fun and they're available and it seems like a good idea. There's nobody around you talking about the consequences or being ­honest with you about that."

You can listen to Radcliffe's full Desert Island Discs interview here.