ELTON GETS BACK TO WORK

The Rocket Man fell ill last month (Oct09) with a nasty bout of influenza - but the star sparked serious fears for his health when he was admitted to the King Edward VII Hospital in Windsor, England after medics diagnosed him with an E.coli bacterial infection.

John was forced to scrap his entire U.K. tour, as well as a gig in Ireland and a string of U.S. concerts with collaborator Billy Joel, when doctors deemed him too sick to perform.

A spokesman for the star has confirmed he was released from hospital on Thursday (05Nov09) and is feeling "fine".

John is expected to continue his Face 2 Face tour with the Piano Man in Oakland, California on 14 November (09). The rest of the cancelled dates are expected to be rescheduled for December (09).