Robbie: "I was close to dying like Heath"

Robbie Williams was heading towards a "Heath Ledger kind of scenario" because of his past drug addiction.

[comment] (Robbie Williams)[/comment]

The 39-year-old singer was "days away from dying" on several occasions and has compared himself to the late actor who died from an accidental overdose in 2008.

[comment] (The late Heath Ledger in his iconic role as The Joker)[/comment]

Speaking to the Daily Mail Weekend magazine, he said: "I managed to escape by the skin of my teeth and I'm lucky. I was days away fro dying quite a few times on all manners of substances. There could easily have been a Heath Ledger kind of scenario.

"Unfortunately I've been in a place where I didn't care if I was on the planet or not. I do care now, but at the time I was so deep into addiction I knew I was probably going to die soon but I didn't care.

"I was taking a whole cocktail of drugs. My left arm went numb I was taking so much cocaine."

Indeed, now Robbie - who has a 14-month-old daughter Theodora Rose with his wife Ayda Field - feels like he's looking back at a "different person", although he can admit he was having fun at the time.

[comment] (Robbie with wife Ayda in 2010)[/comment]

He explained: "It does seem like a different person. I had a lot of fun in between the woe. Nobody carries on taking drugs if they don't like them and I enjoyed my time among the reckless abandon.

"I managed to escape by the skin of my teeth and I'm lucky."