He may be one of the world's best known metal/rock stars, but James Hetfield is not immune to the odd ego-bruising encounter.

On this occasion, it was more than his ego that was bruised, as the Metallica frontman faceplanted on stage after falling into a trap-door that was part of the band's stage set-up during their gig in Amsterdam.

The 54-year-old apparently forgot about the trap-door (which were there to allow percussion platforms to rise up out of the stage) opening as he turned and lost his footing during 'Now That We're Dead', but recovered quickly enough as his bandmates continued playing.

When the song had finished, he asked the crowd "Is everybody ok?", adding "Yes, I'm ok. My ego, not so much. But we're fine. Hurt my feelings a little bit."

Watch the incident below: