POP legends Duran Duran have been forced to postpone a show in Bournemouth tonight.

Lead singer Simon Le Bon has been suffering from an acute case of laryngitis, which had already led to shows in London and Brighton being axed.

It had been hoped that by resting over the weekend Le Bon would have been fit to play tonight and at a further three shows in Cardiff, Manchester and Sheffield later this week.

But a statement on the band’s website said that, after a consultation with specialists and a vocal coach, Le Bon had been advised that he needed to carrying on resting his voice while treatment continued.

The shows will now be rescheduled and fans should hold onto their tickets ahead of an announcement of new dates.

Le Bon said he was “devastated” that the All You Need Is Now tour would not be able to resume as planned at the BIC tonight.

He said: “I was really hoping that things would have improved enough by today to have allowed us to continue with the tour, but having spent two hours with one of the specialists, I have been advised that I need to hold off for about another week.

“I know how difficult this has been for all of the fans, as we’ve been postponing shows with little notice, in the hope each day that the improvement would have been significant enough for me to sing again without risking any long-term damage.

“I am now focussing on getting back for Berlin – which is on June 8.”

A spokesman for the BIC said customers would be contacted soon regarding a new date.