Erasure Frontman Diagnosed With HIV

ERASURE'S ANDY BELL HAS HIVERASURE frontman ANDY BELL has announced he's been battling HIV for the past six years. The CHAINS OF LOVE singer has issued a statement thanking fans for their support and assuring them that despite his battle with the virus he is in good spirits and has a long future ahead of him.Bell, one of the first openly gay pop stars in the 1980s, says in a statement, "I found out I was HIV positive in June 1998 when I had a bout of pneumonia in Mallorca (Spanish island), since then I have been taking combination therapy and I am feeling fine. In fact, I have never felt better."Despite his illness, Bell is celebrating his band's 20th anniversary next year (05) with an album which has just been recorded. NIGHTBIRD is due to be released on 25 January (05).They also have plans to embark on a tour in Britain and America in the spring