Getting close to Amy Winehouse

I never met Amy Winehouse but I did spend a lot of time with her former husband Blake Fielder Civil, a tabloid villain and a self confessed drug addict.

If you believe everything you read in the Sun you ought to have your head examined. But more seriously, if you believe some of it must be true, after all there's no smoke without fire, Blake is a demon, the very worst type of human being anyone is likely to encounter.

In fact, he's a clever, witty, softly spoken, polite young man. He's mostly good company though on occasion he can present moral dilemmas.

Blake wants to work in the film industry. He has talent and experience. He used to work on film sets before he met Amy. He was even hob nobbing with the stars before he got into films. When he was working in a flower shop he got to know one of the Rolling Stones.

Despite all this he is more or less unemployable: everyone knows (or thinks they know) he had a hard drug problem and he made life more difficult for Amy.

Well maybe. He was certainly very important to Amy. Some of her songs clearly reveal she had Blake in mind. Press reports suggested that much of her posthumous album would be about her relationship with Blake.

Clearly Amy and Blake lived in an environment where hard drugs and fast living were every day realities. Who was the leader and whether there ever was a victim are probably meaningless questions.

Amy died while Blake was in prison. Alcohol rather than hard drugs got the blame.

Blake was in jail because he couldn't get a job in the film industry, probably. His girlfriend (yes Blake's moved on since his divorce from Amy) says Blake might want to speak to me when he gets out.

There was a time when I thought Blake was just about the hottest celebrity around; that his name was capable of opening any door. He's hot alright: but too hot to handle. His name closes doors, it doesn't open them. Or at least that's my experience.

But maybe I'll go and buy Blake a coffee when he gets out (if he lets me). It could be interesting.