Morrissey has issued a statement to his fans apologising for the postponed UK tour dates due to illness.

Writing on his official website, the 50-year-old stressed that none of the dates were cancelled and he will honour them.

He confirmed that the four London dates (three at the Brixton Academy and one at the Mile End Troxy Ballroom) have been repositioned until July, while, as previously announced, the Royal Albert Hall and Birmingham dates will take place in October.

Speaking of the suspected throat illness which blighted him, Morrissey said he has “endured a titanic struggle against an intolerable virus lately” and that the shows he completed in Manchester, Hull and Hartlepool pushed him to his “physical limits.”

Vowing that he will be fit to resume his European tour this weekend, he wrote:

“I am very pleased to confirm that we will resume at Luxembourg this coming Friday (5 June), absorbed and collected. I have been reconstructed by a Wiltshire hospital and I am as close to good health as I'm likely to get.

I apologize to everyone caught up in the to-ing and fro-ing, but the disappointment of postponement is less than the disappointment of hearing me sing on one engine.

I should stress that nothing has been canceled. The four London concerts are repositioned in July, and both Birmingham and the Royal Albert Hall are October fixtures. I've endured a titanic struggle against an intolerable virus lately, and although Hull, Hartlepool and Manchester were nights that comprised a whole life, the physical limits were reached. False notes crush the soul.

Besides Luxembourg and beyond, I am excited about the October release of Swords, which is an 18-track compilation of b-sides of singles from the last three albums. This will be a Polydor release.

Thanks to everyone who bought 'Years of Refusal'. We were the number one seller in the UK for the week of release, but, as with 'You Are The Quarry' and 'Your Arsenal', we were booted off the number one spot on the last hour of the final day. We cried.

I would like to point out that some passable creature is using my name and sending sharply chiseled replies to people via Twitter, MySpace and Facebook. This person is not me. Not enough happens in my life that I would wish to share it with others. I do not scan these sites – or whatever they are - so I can only hope that whoever is posing as me is at least worth talking to. Beware of false imitations.

Thanks for reading these unvarnished facts, and thanks for giving us some greatly enjoyable nights on the Refusal tour.

Absolutely yours,

Morrissey.”

(by Scott Colothan)