Arnold 'tried to help Spears two years ago'

Tom Arnold has claimed that he urged Britney Spears to get help for drug addiction two years ago after finding her slumped in the stairwell of his apartment block.

The actor said he tripped on Spears after discovering her in the hallway of the building where they both lived at the time.

He then tried to persuade the singer, who was still living with ex-husband Kevin Federline, to enroll in a 12-step programme to overcome her addictions.

He is quoted as saying: "I tripped on her... She waited for an hour and a half for Kevin to come up in the elevator and find her and go, 'Oh my God, honey, are you OK?' and help her in. Now that's sad."

The True Lies star battled drink and drug addictions before entering rehab in the early '90s. He divorced comedienne Roseanne Barr in 1990 after four years of marriage.