A group of hard-up Oxford nurses have lashed out at millionaire pop star Sir Elton John for pulling out of a concert they travelled 150 miles to see.

Nurses Jeni Brownlee, 37, Pat Brown, 40, Mary Murray, 30, and Simon Darwin, 30, each paid £35 for tickets to see Elton perform with Billy Joel at the Old Trafford cricket ground, in Manchester, last week.

But when they arrived at the 30,000-capacity venue they found the concert had been cancelled after American singer-songwriter Joel suffered an asthma attack.

Billy Joel apologised to fans in a leaflet handed out at the gate - but the statement made no mention of Elton John.

The nurses, who work at the Churchill Hospital and Radcliffe Infirmary, are angry Elton did not perform on his own, or apologise for his absence. The star - who once sang Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word - later performed without Billy Joel at a concert on the same Face To Face tour in London on Sunday night.

The nurses are - all huge Elton John fans before their fruitless journey north - turning their backs on the Candle in the Wind singer. The concert was to be a special treat for Mr Darwin's 30th birthday and for Mrs Brown, who has a child with special needs.

Ms Brownlee, a nurse in the Churchill's John Warin ward, said: "All four of us have gone off him now. We all had to work extra hours or take annual leave to go up to Manchester and we feel as if we have been kicked in the teeth."

"For someone of his calibre, he is basically saying he cannot be bothered."

Billy Joel was believed to have suffered an asthma attack when the duo appeared in Glasgow the night before last Wednesday's ill-fated concert.

Press reports during the day indicated that although Bill Joel had pulled-out, the concert had not been cancelled.

In a statement, Elton John said: "I feel dreadful that the Manchester show had to be cancelled owing to Billy's illness. On my next solo tour of mainland Europe I will make sure that we put in a special detour to Manchester."

A spokesman added: "Elton was keen to perform the show in Manchester on his own, but it was felt that this would not be fair on fans who had bought tickets on the basis of seeing both Elton and Billy."

The nurses are expecting a full ticket refund, who bought their tickets last November, have now returned them to promoters and expect a full refund.

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