Sick Duran Duran star NICK RHODES has issued a personal apology to fans for the cancellation of the remaining dates of their world tour, insisting there's nothing he loathes more than scrapping shows.
The Rio hitmakers have been forced to axe the final run of concerts on their lengthy global trek after keyboardist Rhodes fell ill with a mystery virus which has left him "entirely exhausted".
He has now reached out to devotees to thank them for their continued support and express his regret at the turn of events, admitting the tour now "feels incomplete" as they had all been looking forward to celebrating the last gig on the schedule in Ontario, Canada on Saturday (01Sep12).
A message posted on the band's website on Thursday (30Aug12) reads: "Firstly, I would like to personally apologise to everybody who had tickets to attend the shows which we were forced to cancel during the final week of our world tour. I know how far some of you travel to see us perform and how seldom we reach some of your cities. We never want to let you down.
"In this instance, it was truly unavoidable. I contracted a virus, which dragged me down and left me entirely exhausted. Although I made it clear to doctors that it was my express wish to recommence the tour as soon as possible, they all strongly advised that I needed to recover properly, which regrettably, meant resting for the remainder of this week.
"It was enormously disappointing for everyone in the band and our crew, whom we have worked with over the last twenty months. We were very much looking forward to celebrating the finale in grand style, with you, as this has undoubtedly been one of the most exciting and rewarding periods of our entire career.
"There is nothing I loathe more than having to cancel concerts. I'm sure you can imagine how much more pleasurable it is for me to see your smiling faces every night when we perform, rather than be isolated in a hotel room, feeling miserable, dealing with endless doctors... This was particularly hard to come to terms with as it was the last week of nearly two years of touring and we were hoping for a triumphant conclusion. Now it feels incomplete."
The band was forced to scrap a planned European tour last year (11) when singer Simon Le Bon lost his voice.