PA
Singer Van Morrison has reportedly lost the child he is said to have fathered with his tour manager Gigi Lee.
It was revealed last week that Miss Lee, 44, died from throat cancer in a hospital in Northern Ireland in October. Sources close to the family are now claiming that the little boy she allegedly had with Van Morrison - George - died in January this year at just 13 months old.
Publicly, Morrison denied he was the boy's father, but Miss Lee insisted he was.
The Daily Mail reports a 'British acquaintance' of Miss Lee saying that baby George's death came 'as a total shock'.
The news of the baby was first revealed at Christmas 2009, when Van Morrison's official website put up a birth announcement which read: 'Gigi and Van Morrison are proud to announce the birth of their first son, George Ivan Morrison III. "Little Van", born December 28, 2009 – the spitting image of his daddy.'
The singer claimed the message was a hoax and it was removed from the site. He went on to insist he was not the baby's dad and didn't even KNOW Miss Lee, despite photos of the couple later emerging.
Van Morrison reportedly spent thousands of pounds in legal fees to keep the relationship out of the papers.
What a bizarre - and sad - turn of events.