Chelsea pop concert called off

A pop concert at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge Ground headlined by R and B star Jamelia has been cancelled because of poor ticket sales.

The show, the first of its kind planned for the Premiership champions' stadium, had been organised to mark the club's centenary year.

Jamelia was set to top the bill alongside Lemar, Girls Aloud, Liberty X, Mark Owen, Lisa Scott Lee and Jenny Frost. They were expected to perform in front of 15,000 fans on Saturday.

Promoters were confident that the concert would be a sellout-and gave priority to club season ticketholders and members. The club even agreed to close down the ground's upper tiers because of fears that the sound of people dancing late into the night would disturb local residents.

But organisers were forced to pull the plug on the show after it failed to sell enough tickets. A spokeswoman said: "Unfortunately we have had to cancel the concert. It's a great shame and we take no pleasure in doing it but we had no choice as we simply did not sell enough tickets."

Anyone who bought a ticket will receive a full refund, she added.