Duran Duran’s John Taylor shares health update about bandmate Andy Taylor

Duran Duran has enjoyed the sweetness of success for many decades and the Brummie band is set to return for a night of great music to Birmingham.

The band had earlier said they were getting back together with cancer-diagnosed Andy Taylor for a new album. While Andy may not be on tour yet, there is hope that he will join them on stage again one day. However, fans might be able to listen to songs Andy created during the band’s 2023 tour.

The band is set to go on a UK arena tour starting April 29 in Manchester before coming to Birmingham next month. Before they get ready to set the stage on fire on May 5, 2023 at Utilita Arena in Birmingham with their peppy music, the band has shared some positive news about their bandmate Andy Taylor - who had previously revealed that he has prostate cancer.

Bandmate John Taylor shared an update on Good Morning Britain on April 19 (Tuesday). John, who is the bassist of the band, said that Simon Le Bon and Andy have spent some time together working on songs.

"He’s doing okay," John told Susanna Reid and Martin Lewis on the show. "Simon [Le Bon] was with him for a week, they did a bunch of recording on songs for [their new] album.”

About they music they recorded, he said: "It’s fantastic what we’ve done. It’s a different kind of project, there’s a lot of cover songs with is unusual for us and then there’s some old Duran songs that have been rebooted. Andy sounds phenomenal."

John added that talks to Andy and “he had hope.” John said: “He’s been introduced to this new treatment, this new therapy that he’s going to be undertaking." Susanna asked: "Did Andy’s diagnosis make you all think twice?"

"I think it does," John replied. "I hate that term, ‘men of a certain age’. There’s a lot of it around, I’m aware a lot of people are issues, it’s the big word that comes up, so you’ve got to know as much as you can at all times." John added that the band "hadn’t performed together in years" when they learned about Andy’s health situation.

They made the announcement in Los Angeles when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The band was inducted by American actor Robert Downey Jr in a ceremony on 2022. However, they didn’t know until two days before.

John said: "He was due to fly into Los Angeles for the rehearsals and we hadn’t played together in years, it was quite exciting and then we got the word." When Susanna asked if Andy will be joining them when they go on tour next month, John said: "I don’t think so, maybe down the road but not yet.” John is looking forward to the UK arena tour as they haven’t done one in a while. He said: “It’s big for us.”

Tickets for Duran Duran + Special Guests Jake Shears & Lia Lia are still available for the Birmingham show on May 5 in Utilita Arena but there is low availability. You can check TicketMaster for tickets.