LONDON: He was an 11-year-old schoolboy who suddenly became one of the biggest child stars in the world.
But the whirlwind of fame left a less than glamorous legacy on the private life of Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe, he has revealed.
The actor has told how he developed a dependency on alcohol as he attempted to live a “famous person’s lifestyle”. He stopped drinking last August after becoming “so reliant” on alcohol, he said.
His decision to become teetotal coincided with the beginning of a relationship with his current girlfriend and he now prefers quiet nights in to the partying lifestyle.
Radcliffe, who is estimated to be worth £48 million (around R520m), said he turned to drink as he became increasingly complacent about his role as an actor, developing a penchant for whisky and partying.
“I became so reliant on (alcohol) to enjoy stuff,” he told the forthcoming issue of GQ magazine.
“There were a few years there when I was just so enamoured with the idea of living some sort of famous person’s lifestyle that really isn’t suited to me.”
Radcliffe was photographed in St Petersburg, Russia, during a vodkafuelled evening to celebrate his 21st birthday party last July. However, he admitted he was fortunate the papa-razzi failed to capture more of his binges.
He added: “I really got away with that because there were many instances when a shot like that could have been taken.”
The actor, who owns flats in Chelsea and New York, admitted he now prefers to spend his evenings at home with his girlfriend rather than at parties.
“I’m actually enjoying the fact I can have a relationship with my girlfriend where I’m really pleasant and I’m not ****ing up totally all the time,” he said of his new lifestyle.
He added: “As much as I would love to be a person who goes to parties and has a couple of drinks and has a nice time, that doesn’t work for me. I do that very unsuccessfully.
“I’d just rather sit at home and read, or go out to dinner with someone, or talk to somebody I love, or talk to somebody that makes me laugh. There’s no shame in enjoying the quiet life. And that’s been the realisation of the past few years for me.”
Despite recent newspaper reports, his secret love is not Olive Uniacke, the stepdaughter of Harry Potter producer David Heyman. They were photographed together last year, but remain just friends.
Asked in the interview what advice he would give to his younger self, Radcliffe replied: “Don’t try too hard to be something you’re not.”
And he said of his huge wealth: “I don’t know what to do with it. I’m very fortunate to have it, and it gives you room to manoeuvre. But the main thing about having money is it means you don’t have to worry about it. And that for me is a lovely thing. It’s not for fast cars and hookers.”
l Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part II, the last instalment in the film franchise, will be released in South Africa on July 13. – Daily Mail