Kaley Cuoco mistook helpful stranger for attacker when her hair caught fire and she didn't notice

Kaley Cuoco got a fright recently when she set her own hair alight in a bar without realising what she'd done.

The Big Bang Theory star was approached by a stranger who attempted to extinguish the flames, only for her to think she was being accosted by an over-eager fan.

The 34-year-old told fans via her Instagram TV series A Cup of Cuoco that the scenes had unfolded in a bar in Rome as she filmed for her new TV show The Flight Attendant.

Read more: Big Bang star 'has no problem' living alone one year into marriage

She told of how she headed to a local drinking spot in the early hours one night with some co-stars and friends before things took a turn. She recalled: "I'm sitting there enjoying myself, talking to the girls and I smell something. It smells like someone is burning toast."

Cuoco went on: "I see one of my girlfriends’ eyes go really big, out of nowhere this guy comes behind me and, what I’m thinking is he’s attacking me, and he’s patting me down.

“And I'm like 'I’m getting attacked!' I’m hearing someone saying, 'fuoco, fuoco, fuoco', my narcissistic brain goes, ‘yes I’m Miss Cuoco, yes, do you want a picture, of course’. I’m literally thinking they’re saying 'Cuoco, Cuoco, Cuoco'."

However, she eventually realised that her hair had caught alight at the back after getting too close to a candelabra, and the stranger was actually saying the Italian word for fire.

The actor confirmed that she had come to no real harm, and that her hair wasn't badly damaged either before describing the moment as "hilarious".

She also shared that she wished she had a video of the scenes and jokingly warned her followers to stay away from candelabras.