Rod Stewart shares health update after cancelling Australian shows revealing diagnosis

Sir Rod Stewart has given fans an update on his health after he was forced to cancel an Australian show on Saturday.

The 'Maggie May' singer was scheduled to play Geelong in Australia as part of his A Day On The Green tour, however just six hours before he was due to appear on stage he released a statement cancelling the show.

Taking to his Instagram account, the British rocker told fans he is doing well after being diagnosed with strep throat.

"I had a slight setback here in Melbourne, had to miss a show because I had strep throat," he said in a video.

"My dear friends in Adelaide, just to guarantee that the show will be going ahead," he said.

"I’m fine now, and I’ll be there and looking forward to it."

It is currently unclear how the mystery illness will affect the rest of the tour.

Next month the 78-year-old singer will be taking to the stage at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on April 5 before heading north to Napier on April 8 and then to Auckland's Spark Arena on April 9, with Cyndi Lauper and New Zealand's very own Jon Stevens.

He then will perform in Mexico, the US, Ireland, the UK and Spain between April and September.