Hugh Grant gets help from the spirits

Hugh Grant says he had a bit of libation help to get through the dancing scenes in his latest movie, "Music and Lyrics."

"I could do everything without the alcohol except the dancing. I’m sorry, but at my age especially, you only dance if you’re really quite drunk," he said Friday on TODAY.

The 46-year-old Grant plays Alex Fletcher, a bumbling, washed-up ‘80s pop star trying to make a comeback with the help of a shy songwriter (Drew Barrymore). In his role, he had to sing, dance and play the piano.

Grant said the day after he agreed to the part, "I woke up with a jolt and I thought, 'What have I done? I can’t sing. I can't dance.'"

But with the help of computer programs and professional singing coaches, he held his own and hit the right chords. "The funny thing is by the end of the film I quite liked my own singing voice. I sing for pleasure now," he told TODAY’s Meredith Vieira.

Asked is he was drunk in the signing and dancing scenes, the British actor replied: "Well, I had a few sips of whiskeys snuck to me by the makeup girl in a 7-Up bottle and even that didn’t do the trick, so I stole some tranquilizers off someone. By 12 o’clock I was on fire."

He added comically, "It’s a habit I’m finding hard to break now. I’m addicted to both."

The "Four Weddings and a Funeral" star said it was "very nice" to work with Barrymore. "I felt sorry for Drew because I'm very tense on a film set and she’s extremely happy and relaxed and full of sunshine," he said.

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