Sir Elton John has been blocked from playing a concert in Egypt.

The flamboyant 'Rocket Man' singer had the private show, scheduled for May 18, cancelled after recent comments he made in which he claimed Jesus was a "super-intelligent gay man" and also spoken against Middle Eastern countries' treatment of gay people.

Mounir al-Wasimi, the head of Egypt's Musician Union said his country could not allow: "A homosexual who wants to ban religions, claimed that the prophet Issa (Jesus) was gay and calls for Middle Eastern countries to allow gays to have sexual freedom" to perform.

Christian deity Jesus is also counted as a prophet in Islam - the main religion practiced in Egypt.

Openly Gay Elton's inflammatory comments about the attitude toward homosexuals in the region included saying: "I don't know what makes people so cruel. Try being a gay woman in the Middle East - you're as good as dead."

Elton was married to female music engineer Renate Blauel in 1984, but they divorced four years later and Elton soon came out as gay. He is now married to filmmaker David Furnish.