Brian May cuts Spears from Queen musical

Brian May has demanded that Britney Spears' name be cut from hit musical We Will Rock You.

The show features gang members named after 20th century icons, but the Queen guitarist ordered that the Spears' character be ditched in favour of Victoria Beckham.

He said: "We have taken out references to her in deference to the fact she is going through such a hard time. The references have always been intended as good-natured fun and even a kind of tribute to her. But we didn't want there to be any risk of the show adding to her pain."

He added that he was "very sensitive" to the feelings of other artists, saying: "We never feel comfortable with anything other than a non-destructive, affectionate gag.

"We send our love to Britney. We would like to see her back up there, in private and in public - pure spun gold."

Spears was released from the psychiatric ward at the UCLA Medical Centre on Wednesday.