90s heartthrob Anthony Kavanagh ended up "coked-up empty soul, smoking crack in a skip with a homeless lady"

A 90s heartthrob who enjoyed hit singles and tours alongside the likes of Boyzone has revealed the tragic side to stardom which left him "a coked-up empty soul, smoking crack in a skip with a homeless lady".

Anthony Kavanagh, who rose to fame in the late-90s under the name Kavana at the age of just 16 with singles including I Can Make You Feel Good and Special Kind of Something, has exposed the underbelly of fame in a new autobiography, called Pop Scars.

In the book, obtained by The Sun, the former heartthrob reveals how dealing with fame led to alcohol and drug addiction which ended up leaving him homeless.

Born in Manchester, Kavana wrote of how at such a young age he could not deal with the life his new-found fame and wealth brought, and ended with him "hitting the hard stuff", including cocaine-fuelled parties at the Playboy Mansion.

"I did too much coke and had to be hosed down in a gold shower room by one of Mr Hefner's Playboy bunnies," he wrote, as well as detailing parties which saw him "necking ecstasy in hot tubs with A-listers".

But it led the star down a dark path, with him telling how it "culminated in me doing crack in a skip with a homeless lady who I bonded with then trusted with my Monzo card to go buy more drugs and who never returned".

Broke after his drug excesses, Kavana said he was left penniless and "secretly living in an old people's sheltered housing complex" with his mum.

After the end of his pop career, Kavana went on to star in soap spin-off Hollyoaks: In The City in 2006, and finished seventh in the 2017 edition of Celebrity Big Brother.

Now, he has been sober for around three years and previously spoke of his plans to write a book aimed at revealing "what was happening back in the pop industry back in the 90s and when I went to live in Hollywood".

"There are some really outrageous stories that most people wouldn't know about," he told Attitude Magazine. "Yes, people should be afraid - very afraid."

Writing on social media ahead of the book's release, he said: "(I) can't believe I'm saying this but I actually wrote a book. Like, by myself, like those grown ups do. POP SCARS covers all things 90s pop but more importantly what happens AFTER fame."

"It's about teenage fame, loss, addiction and hope, and how not to iron a white Kappa tracksuit," he added. "It's been described as 'Laugh out loud, jaw dropping, and heartfelt', but you can decide that.

"Come join the ride with me. More news to come. This is for the underdog."