Lloyd Webber defends 'genius' Winehouse

Andrew Lloyd Webber has defended Amy Winehouse's performance in Birmingham on Wednesday and slammed people for criticising the star.

The composer, who was in the crowd for the show, insisted that Winehouse showed "flashes of genius" and claimed he could not understand why she was booed and people were walking out.

During the performance the singer dedicated a song to her husband Blake Fielder-Civil, whom she had visited in jail that morning. She also reportedly stumbled her way through a few songs and finally dropped her microphone and walked off stage after fans started leaving the venue.

But Lord Lloyd Webber claims she is the "new Ella Fitzgerald" and praised her, saying: "I thought there were moments when she was absolutely magnificent. I didn't notice her doing anything peculiar. I thought her voice was toned and she was handling material you would not expect a girl of her age to cope with.

"It was strange what happened. Suddenly, way into the show, the audience suddenly turned on her and she wasn't equipped to handle it.

"I was with Sir David Frost and he has seen it all. Neither of us could work out why the crowd turned on her - it just happened in one moment."

After being heckled by the audience, Winehouse bit back, saying: "Let me tell you something. First of all, if you're booing you're a mug for buying a ticket.

"Second, to all those booing, just wait til my husband gets out of incarceration. And I mean that."

The music impresario explained that by reacting in the way she did she had made things worse, but claimed the turmoil added to her appeal, telling The Sun: "There were moments during the show where she was up there with the A-list. Amy showed flashes of genius.

"It wasn't fair what happened to her. If she was working with me I would have a heart-to-heart about her obvious talent. I would beg her not to throw it away and advise her to get whatever help she needed."

Lloyd Webber added: "If she hadn't abused the crowd everybody would have gone home saying 'Gosh she's right back. Terrific concert.'"