Britney Spears' estranged uncle has opened up for the first time about the troubled singer's drink and drug-addled childhood. 49-year-old William Spears lays bare the troubled early life of the 'Toxic' pop wreck.
He says the singer started drinking when she was just 13 years old - whilst she was a presenter on the Mickey Mouse Club. She began taking drugs at 14.
She is also terrified she will mimic her tragic grandmother Emma Jean, who committed suicide aged 31.
William - known as Willie - was found in his camper van home near Britney’s childhood town of Kentwood, Louisiana.
After her turbulent early years, Willie says she went “buck-wild” on turning 18, snorting cocaine on her birthday, adding: “She has tried just about everything - cocaine, crystal meth, ecstasy.”
Willie says he decided to speak out after seeing Britney's capitulation since losing full-time access to her two young sons.
He said: “I’m not just a family friend or someone who claims to know them. I was there every day, working with them. I have seen all the terrible things happen.”
Willie claims Britney's battle with the bottle started when she was just 13. On one occasion, he was invited to a Florida wrap party for Disney kids’ TV show Mickey Mouse Club - which Britney fronted alongside then teen stars Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera.
He added to British newspaper The Sun: “The kids were definitely drinking that night. While the adults talked, they were somewhere else, up to no good.
“They had a bottle of gin and slipped away to the bathroom to drink it. I saw them going.”
But Willie is certain Britney was exposed to drink and drugs long before she hit the big time.
“Her brother Bryan was the star of the high school football team. They went to all the best parties where there were drugs and alcohol - a lot.”
Willie believes Britney's drug problem started at 14 with marijuana - but adds: “It got worse when she got famous and she found out that people would do what she wanted them to.
“She wanted to drink, party and go where she wanted to go.
“She is a ruthless little thing, make no mistake. Nobody controls her. She bosses everyone around her.”
Willie says that Britney's dad, his brother Jamie - must take a large chunk of responsibility for her boozy lifestyle.
“Just about everyone in the Spears family is a drunk and Britney’s dad Jamie was one of the worst.
“He would drink from daylight to night. Britney saw him drunk all the time.”
Jamie went into rehab in 2004 to overcome an addiction to alcohol and painkillers.
Willie continues: “Britney grew up thinking it was alright to drink and that you can live with a drinking problem.”
Willie is a recovering drug addict and has been clean for more than four years. But sensationally he admits taking drugs with Britney in the past.
He adds: “I know she did cocaine on her 18th birthday - I was there.
“We were at a party in an apartment and I spotted her doing a line just before I did one. We smoked pot together too.”
“One time I happened to be in New Orleans when Jamie called me, he adds.
“Britney was only 18 but she could drink where she wanted.
“Britney had passed out in the VIP area of a club and someone needed to get her. She just drank too much.
“I got there and she was out cold. I carried her out the back door and put her in the car. She got a telling off but she never listened. The drug use went up overnight when she moved to LA to pursue her career.
“The drugs and the alcohol helped her cope with the pressure - helped her to escape from reality.
“We thought maybe getting married and having kids would help her settle down but it was quite the opposite.”
Willie says rows, violent outbursts and heavy drinking were all regular features in Britney’s childhood.
“A few times, Britney called saying, ‘They are fighting again, please come and get me’. It was rough - and the sad thing is it became normal. Once I was over at their house and Jamie walked in drunk and called Lynne a name.
“She was in the kitchen drinking water and just grabbed the glass, walked into the lounge and hit him right between the eyes with it.
“At first Britney was a scared child. You would catch her crying when people were fighting.
“But by that stage she just walked away, as if it wasn’t happening.
“As she got older it started to rub off on her and she would scream and curse at them and try desperately to get them to stop fighting.”
He adds: “The Spears men are known for fighting. We would fight any time, about anything, in front of anybody - and if Britney happened to be there, so be it.”
Willie breaks down in tears as he tells of one dramatic incident. “Jamie was drunk at a barbecue and he tried to drive off with Britney in the car.
“She was no more than five years old. I tried to stop him, so I reached in to grab the keys out of the ignition and he punched me. We got into it right there by the car, fighting in front of her.
“Britney was jumping up and down, crying. Lynne had to run out to get her inside.”
By Owen Williams, Jan 25 2008 © Copyright 2008 - Showbiz Spy
No comments:
Post a Comment