editorial comment and this is why we like Robbie. He does not need to lie prserve his "image".

Robbie Williams launched an attack on the British media yesterday, accusing them of hypocrisy and "devouring" the model Kate Moss over her alleged drug-taking activities.

Williams, who himself has battled problems with alcohol and drugs, claimed that he had taken cocaine with some media figures who were now saying that Moss should not take drugs. He said that the media should put their knives away and "get off her fucking back".

Speaking at a press conference in Berlin ahead of his sold-out performance in the city tomorrow, he said Moss was an "absolute icon" who had done nothing wrong and was entitled to a private life.

Moss, who has been at the centre of allegations of cocaine and crack abuse following her relationship with Libertines singer Pete Doherty, is believed to be undergoing a rehabilitation course at a clinic in Arizona.

Police are also investigating the drug-taking claims and the model has lost several valuable advertising contracts.

Williams, 31, who has been treated in this country and the United States, said: "I think the media have got a lot to answer for. We're talking about a woman who has never harmed anyone or hurt anyone and who has never pretended to be anyone she isn't. Some people in various media groups who I have personally taken cocaine with are now talking about her and saying she shouldn't do it.

"I have done cocaine with these people and, the way they have so much power over people's lives, it wouldn't have surprised me if she had tried to commit suicide the week that everything hit the papers."

The singer said he believed the media "had their knives out" ready to "devour" anyone who put a foot wrong. He added: "She is an absolute icon, she's beautiful. Every time I have met her she has been really lovely to me and I think people should just get off her fucking back. She's done nothing wrong. What she does in her private life should be her private life. I hope she does well, I believe she's in rehab at the moment and I wish her well. I have been to rehab, it's not fun, I hope she's OK in there and I hope she gets better."

Despite his attack, Williams said that he was happy with his fame at the moment.

"I have been famous for 16 years now, and right now I'm happier than I was when I was going to school," he said.

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