The Rolling Stones confirm tour

The Rolling Stones have announced plans to tour later this year.

The iconic British band will take to the stage in the UK and US, playing two shows at London's O2 Arena in late November and the Prudential Center in New Jersey in mid-December.

This will be fans' first opportunity to see the rockers perform live for more than five years, and guitarist Keith Richards insists the shows will be worth the wait.

"Sorry to keep you all hanging around but the waiting is over," he said today. "I've always said the best place for rock and roll is on the stage and the same is true for the Stones. I'm here with Mick [Jagger], Charlie [Watts] and Ronnie [Wood] and everything is rocking. See you very soon!"

Rumours of a tour to mark the group's 50th anniversary have circulated for several years and they confirmed the series of shows on Monday via a video message on YouTube.

The hotly-anticipated concerts will see the group perform hits such as Jumpin' Jack Flash, Gimme Shelter and Paint it, Black as well as a "few surprises".

The Rolling Stones released their new single Doom and Gloom last week. The track, along with another new song One More Shot, will feature on their new compilation album GRRR! which is due for release next month.

Tickets for The O2 shows – which will take place on November 25 and 29 – will go on sale on October 19. Tickets for the dates at Prudential Center – December 13 and 15 – will be available on October 26.

Frontman Mick was interviewed by BBC Radio 2 earlier today and discussed the band's latest offering Doom and Gloom.

"It was written very quickly and the band seemed to like it," he explained. "It was a quick recording session. We recorded two songs - the other one is called One More Shot."

The Rolling Stones' last tour – the Bigger Bang - took two years to complete. The shows were watched by 4.5 million people in 32 countries and generated ticket sales of $437 million.