Prince announces UK arena tour

Prince recently appeared at the Brit awards where he presented best British female solo artist

Following a series of low key gigs, US singer Prince has announced a run of UK arena dates.

He will play shows in Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and Glasgow.

The performer and his band 3rdEyeGirl performed a secret gig in Camden in London in February to promote their new album Plectrum Electrum.

Despite saying he wanted to charge $10 (£6) for his series of upcoming UK shows, tickets for the arenas start at £65 plus booking fees.

His "secret" shows, which also included gigs in Manchester, earlier this year were priced at £70 a ticket.

The dates in May are...

• Thursday 15 May Birmingham LG Arena

• Friday 16 May Manchester Phones 4u Arena

• Thursday 22 May Glasgow The SSE Hydro

• Friday 23 May Leeds First Direct Arena

The tour marks the musician's first big UK shows since his residency at the O2 in London in 2007.

He will play his first show to date in Leeds and is the first time Prince has headlined a show in Birmingham and Glasgow in nearly 20 years.

Tickets go on sale on Friday 2 May at midday.