Pint-size actor Verne Troyer's alcohol addiction has become the stuff of legend in Hollywood. The 34-year-old, best known for playing Dr Evil's sidekick Mini Me in the Austin Powers films The Spy Who Shagged Me and Goldmember, recently fell off the wagon during a flight to one of his many personal appearances.

As the tiny Texan guzzled his way through glass after glass of champagne at 32,000 feet he was heard to snap at friends, 'I can handle it, I know what I'm doing,' as they became concerned by his behaviour. They had every reason to be worried.

Only last year the 2ft 8in star - a regular at AA meetings and parties in Hugh Hefner's Playboy mansion - went on a near-fatal bender after discovering that his model girlfriend was having an affair with a man more than twice his height. Following a trip to hospital for stomach pains, Troyer was admitted into a clinic in Malibu. A friend said, 'Despite his size, Verne can put away a lot. It seems, though, that he's losing his battle with booze.'