Billie Piper says Britney documentary made her 'so angry' she had to turn it off

Like Britney Spears, Billie Piper found fame at a young age. (Getty Images for BFI)
Like Britney Spears, Billie Piper found fame at a young age. (Getty Images for BFI)

Billie Piper has said she had to turn off the Britney Spears documentary because it made her “so angry”.

The star, 38, found fame as a pop star at a young age, just like Spears did.

And she revealed that when she sat down to watch Framing Britney Spears — which charts Spears’ rise to fame as well as her conservatorship battle — she could understand some of what the US star went through.

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Piper told NME the parts about Spears being expected to be virginal and sexual at the same time really resonated with her.

Read more: Billie Piper left 'cynical and jaded' by early experiences of fame

“[The film] made me so angry that I had to turn it off. I know what a lot of that feels like, but she had it on a whole different level,” said the Doctor Who star, pointing out that Spears was world famous whereas she was “locally famous”.

Britney Spears arrives at the 29th Annual GLAAD Media Awards held at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA on Thursday, April 12, 2018. (Photo By Sthanlee B. Mirador/Sipa USA)
Britney Spears's life was documented in Framing Britney Spears. (Sipa USA) (SIPA USA/PA Images)

The mum-of-three said part of her anger stemmed from the fact that a lot of it wasn’t what it was like to be a famous person necessarily, but what it is like “to be female and be called mad because you’re driven mad by something”.

“You’re not born crazy. You’re driven mad by certain things. Then you’re used and hung out to dry,” said Piper. “That’s what made me feel cross and sad.”

Teenage pop star Billie Piper, circa 1998. (Photo by Dave Hogan/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Billie Piper had a chart-topping record at 15. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images) (Dave Hogan via Getty Images)

Piper found fame at 15 when her debut single Because We Want To hit No 1 in the UK chart.

Read more: Britney Spears slates ‘hypocritical’ documentaries

She went on to become an actor, starring in TV series such as Doctor Who, Penny Dreadful and Secret Diary Of A Call Girl.

Piper's directorial debut Rare Beasts will be released across the UK and Ireland on 21 May, in cinemas and on select digital platforms.

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