Alec Baldwin attacks the family court system in a new book which aims to help single fathers.

The actor, who famously called his daughter with Kim Basinger a "rude, thoughtless little pig" when she failed to answer the phone, was banned by a "court order" from delving too deep into his split from the Basic Instinct star, which was made legal in 2002.

He explains in the opening pages of A Promise To Ourselves: Fatherhood, Divorce and Family Law: "What follows will disappoint those who hoped to find a gossipy, salacious tale of a showbusiness marriage gone bad."

Instead he attacks the family court system, which has kept him apart from Ireland, his 12-year-old daughter.

He adds: "It is a system that is corrupt on his best day. It is like being tied to the back of a pickup truck and dragged down a gravel late at night. No one can hear your cries and complaints and it is not over until they say it's over."

Baldwin found time to take a swipe at Basinger at a bash on Friday, telling guests: "My ex-wife reaches an almost sexual level of satisfaction when she's in a room full of high-priced lawyers."