Blake Fielder-Civil on Amy Winehouse: 'People need to realise she had addictions before she met me'

Blake Fielder-Civil, best known for his turbulent relationship with Amy Winehouse, has hit back at allegations that claim he's responsible for her descent into substance abuse which ultimately led to her death.

Talking in an interview with The Times, the former video production assistant said: "I feel like my own legacy as far as Amy goes is that I ruined this amazing person. If I genuinely believed I [ruined her], I probably would really struggle getting through the day."

"I don't think I ruined her, no. I think we found each other and certain people need to realise that she did have other addictions before she met me," he told the publication.

Winehouse and Fielder-Civil were married between 2007 and 2009 after having dated on-and-off for many years previous. Due to his own personal struggles with drug and alcohol abuse, many close to their pair believed that it was Fielder-Civil's fault that Winehouse became immersed in that world.

Accusations that intensified when he admitted to the News of the World in 2008 that he "introduced her to heroin, crack cocaine and self-harming". Later stating: "I feel more than guilty."

The two had a very public tempestuous relationship, with it being reported that they got into violent fights frequently, often resulting in arrests. Winehouse's own father Mitch once described Fielder-Civil as "the biggest low-life scumbag that God ever put breath into".

But Fielder-Civil is adamant that even though he might have shared similar addictions to Winehouse and despite their evidently rocky relationship, he can't be held responsible for her death. "She wasn't a happy, well-adjusted young woman," he said. "And I find it disrespectful to imply I was some Machiavellian puppetmaster."

Fielder-Civil, now the father of two children having been clean for more than a year, claims that he would like to make amends with Winehouse's family. "I'd like to speak to Mitch and genuinely, genuinely plead for his forgiveness, [for any] parts [I've] played in what has occurred." However, while he wants to reach out, Fielder-Civil makes it clear that he draws the line at being blamed for her death, going on to say: "But I won't take responsibility for Amy passing away because it's not fair."

Winehouse, who died from alcohol poisoning at age 27 in July 2011, is currently the subject of the upcoming, critically acclaimed documentary film entitled Amy, which will be seen in cinemas from 3 July.