Matthew Perry to open up about 'darkest days' with addiction in new book tour

Friends actor Matthew Perry will soon be opening up about his battle with addiction while promoting his new memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.

Perry, who famously portrayed Chandler Bing in the US sitcom, has been open about his struggles with painkiller and alcohol addiction in the past, though this book tour promises a new "raw honesty" from him.

The 53-year-old struggled with addiction for 20 years, right through his time on Friends, and got sober in 2001.

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He has since fitted out his Malibu home to be a "sober living home" for men who are struggling with addiction, which is now known as Perry House.

Just a few months ago, Perry revealed that his memoir had been written.

"My ego doesn't like that I have to stop writing about myself. But the book is now done. So that's that," he wrote alongside a photo of a finished manuscript.

Perry revealed in a 2002 interview with Peoplethat just three years into filming Friends, he had become dependent on Vicodin – a heavy opioid painkiller prescribed to him after a skiing accident.

"It wasn't my intention to have a problem with it," he said at the time. "But from the start, I liked how it made me feel, and I wanted to get more."

At one point, his addiction got so bad he lost a lot of weight and fans began to comment.

"I was out of control and very unhealthy," he said, of the weight loss, "I returned to my original birth weight."

While he admitted himself to rehab in 1997, when he returned, his addiction suddenly moved to alcohol.

In 2000, he was hospitalised for alcohol-induced pancreatitis, and by 2001, he admitted himself again to rehab for his addiction to opioids, amphetamines and alcohol.

In 2013 Perry told People: "I couldn't stop," he said. "Eventually things got so bad that I couldn't hide it, and then everybody knew."

His new memoir will take fans through his entire history, from his childhood, to early fame, addiction and then of course, his committed recovery.

Since 2001, Perry has been clean from painkillers, amphetamines, opioids and alcohol.

If you or someone you know would like to talk to someone confidentially about addiction, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit Reach Out. In an emergency, call 000.

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