The 81-year-old star shared the news on social media, telling fans he is "already feeling better" after successfully undergoing a routine coronary stent procedure.

He will take four weeks off to recover before returning to the stage, on the advice of his doctors.

Sir Rod had been scheduled to perform across Iowa, Missouri and Minnesota, as well as a six-night stretch at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.

"I'm already feeling better and very much on the mend," he told his 1.7m followers in a message on Instagram. "I want to thank the doctors, nurses and everyone who has taken such wonderful care of me.

"I'm deeply disappointed to miss these shows and sorry to let my fans down, but I look forward to getting back on stage and having a good time with you all again soon."

A further statement said doctors were pleased with the British star's recovery, that he is doing "very well" and has returned to "normal daily activities".

Sir Rod will now "take the next four weeks to recuperate and regain full fitness before returning to the stage", the statement said. "Unfortunately, this means he will be unable to continue his current tour dates."

Information regarding affected performances will be shared by the respective promoters and venues, it added.

On Ticketmaster, all of Sir Rod's gigs up to the end of August are showing as cancelled.

Two further dates in Colorado are scheduled for September next year.

The announcement comes after the star postponed shows in Cincinnati and Cleveland earlier this month, following medical concerns.

He also cancelled and postponed shows in Nevada and California in May and June, telling fans he was on vocal rest due to a sinus infection, and later that he had been diagnosed with a respiratory infection that resulted in laryngitis.

In 2019, the singer revealed he had been fighting prostate cancer for three years but was "in the clear now, simply because I caught it early".

In 2023, he called in to a live Sky News phone-in and offered to donate money for medical scans, after hearing stories about treatment ordeals on the NHS. On the call, he recounted his own experience of an "empty" private clinic when he went for an annual check-up.

Earlier this month, the rocker welcomed his sixth grandchild after his daughter Ruby gave birth to a son called Levi.

Last year, he performed on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury, playing the famous Sunday afternoon "legends" slot.

The average age of youngsters injured was 12, with just 1.8% wearing helmets when the incidents happened.

Writing in the Emergency Medicine Journal, researchers said there is a need for better public health messaging and a review of government legislation.

"E-scooter-related injuries are rising," they warned, with "serious life-changing implications for families and significant impact on healthcare resources".

According to the study, 59 deaths have been reported in the UK involving e-scooters, including 10 people who were aged under 18.

It is illegal to use privately owned e-scooters in public, but they are available to rent as part of government pilots in some cities.

The study looked at data from Liverpool and Manchester, which have rental programmes, and Sheffield, which does not.

Between January 2019 and December 2024, there were 477 patients recorded with e-scooter injuries at three children's trauma centres.

Some 95% of the injuries were sustained by the rider, and 80% of incidents involved private e-scooters.

The most common injuries were to the arms and legs, but 24.1% were head injuries.

One in 10 head injuries needed scans, hospital admission and surgery in some cases.

Almost three quarters (74%) lived in the most deprived areas.

Of the most seriously injured children, 48% were hurt after colliding with a car or stationary object.

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The average age of the injured children was 12, and half were aged 10 to 13.

More than half of cases took place on public land, such as roads, and in parks or on footpaths, with just 2.5% of injuries happening on private land.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "These are concerning findings, and our thoughts are with anyone who has been injured on our roads.

"It is illegal for private e-scooters to be used on roads, pavements or in other public spaces, including by under-16s, and we're bringing forward new laws to make their use safe and legal, including consulting on requirements like helmets."

The company said that from mid-September, "AI Persona" badges will start to appear on some artist profiles to signal that their identity does not represent a real person.

Spotify said the move was to make the platform more "transparent" and was in response to users expressing concerns about seeing artists that seem human but are in fact AI-generated.

In a statement announcing the development, the company said: "True artist-fan connection can only be built on a foundation of trust and authenticity.

"In music, that means listeners need to be able to trust that the artist behind the music is who they say they are. That's more essential than ever in the age of generative AI."

Spotify insisted the badge "is about the artist's public identity, not about how the music was made".

It added that, by default, AI personas would not be included in any editorial or algorithmic recommendations unless users followed those artists.

The badges will be displayed in the banner and "About" section of an artist's profile page, as well as in "Search" and on track rows across playlists.

Listeners will be able to tap the badge to check if an artist has disclosed that their profile represents an AI persona or if the decision was made by Spotify following a review.

Starting on Tuesday, artists will be able to share that their profile represents an AI persona through Spotify for Artists, while, in instances where Spotify has applied the badge, artists will be notified and given the opportunity to self-disclose or appeal.

The company added that listeners will soon be able to report artist profiles they believe represent AI personas to its review team, but it did not disclose when that feature would be available.

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AI music "flooding" streaming platforms

AI-generated music appearing on streaming sites is becoming an increasingly pertinent issue.

Deezer – a French streaming site for music – estimates that 60,000 fully AI songs are being uploaded to its site every day, over a third of all production.

The platform said it is set to receive more than 20 million AI tracks a year, with Romain Hennequin, head of research at Deezer, telling Sky's Roland Manthorpe earlier this year that "it's a way to totally flood the music streaming services".

Last year, Spotify removed 75 million spam tracks, many of which were AI-generated. The platform's entire catalogue currently stands at 100 million.

While the tracks themselves are not fraudulent, the behaviour around them often is, with an automated system – a bot – being used to repeatedly listen to a song in order to make royalties from it.

Thibault Roucou, Deezer's head of royalties, said that "the vast majority of the listeners of this content are in fact what we call 'stream manipulation' or 'fraud'."

"It's an ongoing battle," he added.

Davis, 53, who played receptionst Dawn Tinsley in the hit sitcom, said on Tuesday she was diagnosed a year and a half ago and the cancer had "metastasized" to her bones, including her "spine, right hip and ribs," adding "it is too late for chemotherapy".

In a post on Instagram, the actress, who is the daughter of comedian Jasper Carrott, said: "As of now, I'm trying to live out whatever might be left of my life in as fun a way as I possibly can.

"I always like to find the teachable moments in anything negative that happens. And cancer has not disappointed in that regard; there's a lot I have learned from it, and I'm grateful for that."

The actress shared a video of her ringing a bell and reading out a rhyme common in many cancer treatment centres to celebrate the end of treatment.

Reading out the poem, she said: "Ring this bell three times well. It's a toll to clearly say my treatments are done, the course is run, and I am on my way."

Recalling the first signs of the disease, she said the initial lump she felt "wasn't a 'lump' as such; rather a kind of hard spot. Really tiny. I almost didn't bother getting it checked. So I guess I'm saying 'don't ignore anything - get everything checked out'".

'I'm at peace with it'

Davis said one of the most important things that has helped her through the cancer is humour, asking her friends and family to make fun of her "as much as possible" and above all to not treat her like a "sick person".

"I'm not scared of whatever comes next. I'm at peace with it," she added.

'Harder' for family and friends

Referring to her dog, who died in 2024, she said she'll "see my Gracie sooner than expected, and for me, leaving my physical body just means going home". "Any and all grieving is for my family," she said. "It's far harder for them than for me."

Davis said she will continue working for animal rights, adding that she would also like to keep working as an actress - a job which is one of the "biggest joys" of her life.

She ended by telling others battling the illness: "I do wish you well", and signing off by adding "much love to you all".

Tributes to 'wise and funny' star

Reacting to her announcement, Piers Morgan called it "horrendous" and "devastating", praising her "courage in talking about this so honestly".

Gavin & Stacey and Casualty star Laura Aikman called her "wise and funny" and said: "Hope you're receiving all of this love coming your way".

Danielle Hambridge, who starred in Squid Game, wrote that she had lived with stage four breast cancer for "nearly eight years".

Sally Kum, of the charity Breast Cancer Now, praised her openness, saying it "will undoubtedly resonate with the many thousands of people living with metastatic breast cancer across the UK".

Davis' story was a powerful reminder that "we must keep pushing for game-changing discoveries and access to life-extending drugs like Enhertu so that people living with metastatic breast cancer can have more time to live".

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Davis rose to fame through her role in The Office, which also helped launch the careers of co-creator Ricky Gervais, Martin Freeman and McKenzie Crook.

Running from 2001 to 2003, it was an influential and acclaimed comedy, not least for its innovative "mockumentary" style.

Davis is also known for playing Hayley Jordan on BBC Radio 4's The Archers for nearly 10 years and appeared in the 2004 comedy Shaun Of The Dead.

At the hearing on Tuesday, Justice Gregory Carro ordered lawyers to draw up a questionnaire to choose jurors for the murder trial of Luigi Mangione.

Mangione, 28, has pleaded not guilty to several state charges in connection with the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 outside a Manhattan hotel.

Jury selection, which begins on 8 September, is expected to be challenging given the high-profile nature of the trial.

The trial is expected to last six weeks.

If convicted, Mangione faces up to life in prison.

Though jurors are not normally anonymous in US criminal trials, judges are increasingly choosing to shield jurors' identities from the public in high profile cases out of concern they may be subject to harassment or intimidation.

Mangione wore a grey suit in court on Tuesday and glanced around the room before he took his seat next to his lawyers.

Justice Carro ruled that an overflow area would be made available for the press and the public to witness the trial if the main courtroom reaches capacity.

Mangione's defence team had accused the Manhattan district attorney's office of trying to limit the number of attendees and shape the coverage the case received.

Prosecutors rejected this criticism and expressed concern about juror exposure.

It was unclear when the jury questionnaire would be finalised, but Mangione's side told Sky's US broadcasting partner NBC News they expect to have a proposed draft this week.

Prosecutors claim they can prove Mangione's guilt with hundreds of hours of surveillance video, ⁠fingerprints, DNA, a phone, a gun with matching ballistics and a ​notebook in which Mangione allegedly wrote of hating insurers and wanting ​to kill.

Mangione's lawyers have revealed almost nothing about their potential trial strategy.

However, ​a July court filing indicated they might argue Mangione lost control ⁠due to an extreme mental health breakdown.

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They have not conceded he was the gunman.

Graphic ​footage of the killing and a five-day manhunt for a suspect created massive interest in the case, before Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania.

Mangione has separately also pleaded not guilty to stalking charges in a federal case, which is scheduled to begin in January.