Chris Rea cancels Bournemouth concert after collapse on stage

Chris Rea has cancelled a further concert following his collapse during a show on Saturday.

The Driving Home For Christmas singer, 66, will no longer perform as planned at the Bournemouth International Centre on December 12.

“All ticket holders should obtain refunds at point of purchase.”

His scheduled concert in Brighton on December 10, part of his The Road Songs for Lovers live tour, was also cancelled after he fell to the stage mid-song while performing at the New Theatre in Oxford on December 9.

One audience member described him as “falling into a clump”.

Shortly after the incident on Saturday night, Rea was thought to be in a “stable” condition.

Darren Fewins, who had been watching the show with his wife, told the Press Association the musician had been on stage for 40 to 45 minutes before he fell backwards.

“He was standing by the microphone and he had the guitar in his hand and he kept shaking his left hand as if there was something not quite right with it,” the 46-year-old said.

“I thought at first there was something wrong with it and he was trying to keep it steady. He then took three or four steps backwards.

“Then he just collapsed on the stage backwards. There was no-one there to catch him, he just fell into a clump.

“He was on his back for about two minutes before they brought the curtain down and then that was it.”

Another audience member said Rea had been “slurring his words a lot through the song beforehand”.

The Middlesbrough-born musician was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had his pancreas removed in 2001, and in 2016 he suffered a stroke.

Rea told BBC Breakfast in August: “I had a stroke exactly this time last year, and I stopped smoking this time last year.”

He said he is still feeling the effects of the stroke, and added: “I’m fine when I’m sitting down, I’ve just got a little bit of balance – it’s a bit dodgy, just in case anyone thinks I’m drunk on-stage.”