Marilyn Manson has revealed that the 1999 Columbine massacre, which killed 13 people, nearly finished his career.

In a frank interview on stage at Cannes Lions advertising festival the rocker also described his relationship with actress Evan Rachel Wood as a "mistake" and confessed he used store drugs in the leg of a toy.

Speaking about the Columbine tragedy - where it was wrongly reported that the two gunmen were wearing Marilyn Manson make-up and T-shirts he said: “When Columbine happened, it really shut down my career entirely, the casinos and the establishments refused to book my shows.

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"It was almost unprecedented. Not only did I not do anything, but they were not fans of mine.

“I sat and watched it live on TV and they said initially they were wearing Manson make-up and t-shirts. Then we found out later that they weren’t.”

Speaking later about death he said he would only commit suicide if he killed other people too.

He said: "If I die and you read that I commit suicide, they lied. Because if I was going to do that I would take everyone with me.

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"You might mistake a song for being suicidal, but that's a state of thought. It's the whole point of art - rather than doing something you just express it."

The music star, 46, also described his failed relationship with actress Evan Rachel Wood as a "mistake".

When shown a picture of his ex - who is twenty years his junior - on stage he said simply described her as "a mistake". But he was kinder about his former wife Dita Von Teese saying "The last time I was in Cannes I was with Dita - she was my longest relationship."

When shown a picture of his younger days partying backstage at a gig holding a toy he said: "I used to take that everywhere with me and store drugs in the leg. That's a good skill."

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Discussing advice passed on by his father he said: “My father told me when I was very young, after he taught me how to be a sniper, because he was in Vietnam my dad said, ‘Son I will give you some advice … if ever you are with a woman, squirt lemon juice on her, if she screams, don’t have sex with her, she has a disease. Second he said, ‘Son when you get a job, on day one fire someone so everyone fears you.”

Discussing his ideal breasts on a woman he explains: "When it comes to breasts it's not the size of them, it's the nipple. The type of nipple is important."

Finally he insisted that he did not have a rib removed so he could perform oral sex on himself.

He said: "If I could then I wouldn't be here right now. I think that rumour started because I used to wear a back brace and various contraptions."