Steve Coogan has opened up about his former cocaine addiction in his forthcoming autobiography.
In Easily Distracted, which is published on October 8, the British actor reveals that he will always be a "recovering addict" but insists that he doesn't take drugs or drink any more.
"I didn't start taking cocaine until I was living in Edinburgh in the summer of 1992. I didn't buy it; people just kept giving it to me and I kept accepting it," Coogan recalls.
This behaviour eventually resulted in a terrifying cocaine-induced panic attack where he thought he was going to die, and started a series of similar attacks.
"I'd be having dinner in a restaurant, surrounded by people I did and didn't know - or anywhere I felt I couldn't easily escape - and I couldn't breathe. I very quickly became depressed."
Coogan started seeing a therapist but as soon as the panic attacks became less frequent, he quit therapy and started doing cocaine again.
"[Cocaine] was always around, always on offer. I didn't start to buy it until years later. I'd have a line or two and stop. I liked it because it gave me confidence. I always thought, 'I'm not really one of those people who does cocaine, so I'll be OK'."
Coogan also revealed that his main problem was that he could still function despite his addiction.
"Being a functioning addict is a curse; my life didn't ever quite fall apart. I maintained a certain quality in my work that almost gave me a licence to misbehave.
"I put a number of people through rehab at my own expense while still abusing drugs myself. I spent tens of thousands of pounds on everyone else's addiction, but it took me a long time to face up to my own."
