Usually the first to criticise her fellow female stars, Lily Allen has given her support to Britney Spears and blames Britney’s current troubles on the fact she grew up in the public eye.

Speaking at the Stella McCartney show during Paris Fashion Week, Lily told the Mirror recently: “My heart goes out to her. I feel that she must be in a tough place right now. It’s really upsetting.”

“I was 19 when I started doing this, so I can’t even imagine what it must be like for her.”

“I find it sort of nightmarish on some days but amazing on others, and I am no way as successful or famous as she is. I mean, I wake up in the morning and there are five paparazzi outside my house pretty much every day.”

“I can’t even imagine what it must be like for her. She must feel like: ‘God I need to get away.’ People must just follow her wherever she goes. She can’t get away at all. That must be a huge stress and whatever she does is her way of escaping.”

In related news, Tatum O’Neal, who lost custody of her own children to ex-husband John McEnroe in the mid-1990s after developing a heroin addiction, has also given her support for the troubled pop star.

Tatum told Entertainment Tonight this week: “I relate to her and feel really sad for her.”

“I did everything that she doesn’t want to do. I did the drug testing … It was very humbling, but I wanted those kids back.”

She added: “[Britney] needs to be in recovery and get her disease of addiction together.”