McFly's Dougie Poynter 'lost' two years due to Valium use

McFly star Dougie Poynter has revealed two years of his life are a “blur” because of his Valium use.

It was revealed this week that the bass player turned to the drug after the band split up in 2016, and that at one point he was taking a “lethal dosage”.

He has now told The Sun it caused him to lose two years of his life.

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“I mean, you get flashbacks, but it’s a huge blur. It’s strange,” he said.

“That’s something which is really hard to come to terms with, literally losing two years. Two years just went as like a weird dream.

“Coming out the other end was like, ‘What? Where’s my band?’”

Poynter also described climbing out of the hole as a “very, very long process”.

McFly found fame in 2004 with their album Room On The 3rd Floor and had a string of hit singles such as Shine A Light, Obviously, I’ll Be OK and You’ve Got A Friend.

They went their separate ways in 2016 and The Sun reported this week that although Poynter was the one who suggested the hiatus, he ended up finding it difficult.

The star apparently opens up about it in upcoming TV show McFly: All About Us.

Poynter – who previously revealed he attempted suicide in 2011 – says: “On the one hand I felt inspired because friends in LA would take me to see other bands and stuff. On the other hand, I was like, ‘But my band’s broken and it’s all my fault.’

“Valium was a way of just making all that disappear.”

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His bandmates noticed what was happening, with guitar player Danny Jones saying Poynter “went from being quite sketchy to being super chill, like almost dribbling”.

“He sort of told me what he’d been taking. He was like, at that lethal dosage,” added drummer Harry Judd.

Poynter sought help in rehab and the band later got together for group counselling to help them get things back on track.

They reunited as McFly in 2019 and recently signed their first record deal since 2009.

Watch: McFly’s Danny Jones gets emotional as he hears stories from long-time fans