Dame Shirley Bassey explains why she did not perform at Jubilee concert

Dame Shirley Bassey has said she would have been “delighted” to perform a duet with Sir Tom Jones at the Queen’s Jubilee concert, but was unable to attend due to her schedule.

The 85-year-old Welsh singer has explained why she was absent from the BBC’s Platinum Party at the Palace in June, after recent reports speculated she had refused to collaborate with fellow Welsh singer Sir Tom, as she wanted her own spot.

She said: “Newspaper reports this morning suggested that I had refused to perform at the Queen’s Platinum Party because I was unhappy at not being offered a solo appearance.

“This is entirely untrue. I was offered a solo appearance and would have been delighted to have done a duet with Sir Tom, but my schedule simply did not, at the time, allow me to travel to the UK.

The Jubilee concert, staged in front of Buckingham Palace, featured a star-studded line-up including performances from Sir Rod Stewart, Diana Ross, Duran Duran and Queen + Adam Lambert.

It also included live speeches by the Prince of Wales and Duke of Cambridge.

The BBC said the Platinum Party at the Palace was the most watched programme of the year up to that date, with a peak viewing figure of 13.4 million, and an average audience of 11.2 million.