Gerard Depardieu 'seemingly drunk' during World War I commemoration speech

The actor has previously admitted he can drink up to 14 bottles of wine a day

Gérard Depardieu recently revealed he drinks 14 bottles of wine a day (Getty Images)

Gerard Depardieu has been accused of being drunk at a First World War commemoration event at Belgium’s Flagey in Brussels.

A representative of the Depardieu is yet to respond to The Independent's request for comment.

The actor was scheduled to read a poem by a French poet-singer, known as Barbara, who survived the Holocaust in France. She died in 2008.

The event was also expected to include the work of Depardieu’s son, Guillaume, who died of a lung infection in 2008.

However, when the actor stepped on stage he abandoned most of the prepared text and began yelling “merde” at the audience instead, wildly gesticulating with his hands.

Some members of the audience found his performance entertaining and can be heard laughing on a recording made on a smart phone, although others were more critical.

“Gérard Depardieu was visibly drunk to say the least,” one spectator told Belgian news website La Capitale. “He started off by finding it difficult to find words of welcome.

“Then, he read the same sentence once, twice, sometimes three times!

“Then he left the text that he was reading to digress on to the subject of politics in Belgium. Then, a little later, he asked what page he was on. He also called for a chair.”

He reportedly said that he doesn’t get involved in politics, saying: “They can p**s off, they can p**s off.”

In September, Depardieu said that he could drink up to 14 bottles of wine a day – a habit he does out of boredom, he claims.

“Anyway, I’m not going to die,” he said. “Not now. I still have energy. But if ever I start drinking… I can’t drink like a normal person. I can absorb 12, 13, 14 bottles…per day. But I’m never totally drunk, just a little p****d.

“All you need is a 10-minute nap and voilà, a slurp of rosé wine and I feel as fresh as a daisy! I have to admit that when I start counting, doctors start worrying.”

He failed to turn up to the UK premiere of the film at Edinburgh Festival on 28 June, after pictures emerged of him downing pints the night before in a pub in Skye.

In 2011, the actor was thrown off an Air France flight for urinating in the aisle while the plane prepared to take off.

Fellow actor Edouard Baer, who was travelling with him at the time, said that the incident was caused by Depardieu’s prostate problems, maintaining that he had not been drinking.