British singer George Michael has canceled his tour of Australia due to "major anxiety" brought on by his recent battle with severe pneumonia, he announced on his website. The former Wham! frontman said that he would complete his Symphonica Tour dates in Britain in October before seeking treatment.
He
had been due to open in Australia in Perth on November 10 before
performing in Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Hunter Valley on
December 1.
"I have ... announced the cancellation of the shows in Australia which breaks my heart," Michael said in a statement. The
49-year-old "Careless Whisper" and "Faith" singer fell ill in Vienna
last November and was treated under intensive care for a month for a
life-threatening illness. He was forced to postpone his tour but resumed it some 10 months later. "Since
last year's illness I have tried in vain to work my way through the
trauma that the doctors who saved my life warned me I would experience,"
Michael said. "They recommended
complete rest ... but I'm afraid I believed (wrongly) that making music
and getting out there to perform for the audiences that bring me such
joy would be therapy enough in itself."
He
said his return to the stage had brought him "great happiness" and that
some of his recent performances were his best to date, but concluded: "I was wrong to think I could work my way through the major anxiety that has plagued me since I left Austria last December. "All
that's left for me to do is apologize to my wonderful Australian fan
base and to promise faithfully that as soon as I completed these shows
here in the UK, I will receive the treatment which is so long overdue." Tickets to his Australian concerts will be refunded.
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