Madonna has cancelled the first night of her fifteen date residency at the London Palladium tonight. In a statement on Saturday she said that she had been "told to rest for a few days" by doctors, but insisted that the second night on 29 Jan would go ahead as planned.
This is the ninth date the musician has cancelled on her Madame X tour as a result of a number of injuries - in particular a "torn ligament" and "bad knee", or that's what she told an audience in San Francisco last November.
"I am deeply sorry that I have to cancel my concert scheduled for Monday 27 Jan in London", she said in a statement. "Under doctors' guidance I have been told to rest for a few days. As you all know I have injuries that have plagued me since the beginning of the tour but I must always listen to my body and put my health first".
"The last thing I want to do is disappoint my fans or compromise the integrity of my show. So I will keep going until I cannot", she added. "Again I am deeply sorry to disappoint anyone and please know that it hurts me more than you can imagine to have to cancel any shows".
The London Palladium residency was originally scheduled to begin on 26 Jan, but in November the first show was moved to the end of the run due to - it was said at the time - "the highly specialised production elements" of the concert.
Earlier this month, Madonna cancelled a show in Lisbon just 45 minutes before she was due on stage, saying later on Instagram: "Sorry I had to cancel tonight but I must listen to my body and rest". Another Lisbon show was cancelled two days later "due to pain from her ongoing injuries" and "the need to mitigate more significant damage from this injury".
A final Lisbon performance did go ahead as planned on 23 Jan. In her statement this weekend, Madonna said that the next scheduled London show on 29 Jan would take place, although it remains to be seen if there are further cancellations in the remaining fourteen London dates.