Shirley Bassey has emergency surgery

Dame Shirley Bassey has had emergency surgery.

The 'Big Spender' singer was rushed to hospital from her home in Monaco, France, last week, after suffering crippling stomach pains.

She had emergency surgery on her stomach, and is now recovering in hospital. Her spokesman Paul Carey confirmed: "Dame Shirley Bassey is recovering well after an emergency operation to relieve stomach complications, after complaining of abdominal pain last week.

Doctors performed an emergency procedure and the Dame is making a good recovery and doctors are happy with her progress."

Bassey is expected to recover in time to perform at Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday concert in London's Hyde Park next month.

She has been a regular in the music charts since the late 1950s, and has recorded the theme tunes to three James Bond films - 'Goldfinger', 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'Moonraker'.

Bassey performed at the Glastonbury Festival last year, where she wowed fans by arriving in a helicopter and wearing diamond-encrusted wellington boots.