Matt Willis shares worrying health update on Busted bandmate James Bourne
Busted singer Matt Willis revealed his "best friend" was "really sick" as he updated fans on the pop star's condition.
17 September 2025, 15:08
Busted singer Matt Willis revealed his "best friend" was "really sick" as he updated fans on the pop star's condition.
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Matt Willis shared a worrying health update on Busted star James Bourne last night, telling fans his best friend was "really f***ing sick".
During the opening night of the band's joint tour with McFly, the group addressed the singer-songwriter's absence and admitted it felt wrong without him there on stage.
The musician, 42, was forced to bow out on Monday due to an undisclosed illness, just 24 hours before a string of UK and Ireland shows were about to kick off.
Bassist Matt, who has performed alongside James and Charlie since the band formed in the 00s, broke his silence on his close pal's condition and revealed it all happened "so fast".
He said: "Okay, you may have noticed our best friend is not here tonight. James Bourne is really f***ing sick and we love him and we miss him.
"This is the first show we've ever played without him and it's really weird, but we're gonna do the best we can."
Footage of Tuesday night's gig was shared on social media, capturing exactly what the Busted boys had said about their poorly band mate.
In one clip, Matt told the crowd the Busted star's turn for the worse "happened f***ing fast," adding: "Health is wealth."
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He also revealed the pop supergroup had asked James if he wanted them to cancel tour completely, but the songwriter gave his blessing for the stars to go on without him.
Matt recalled telling James: "We're gonna get someone else to play guitar on some songs because we're gonna miss something."
He then announced that James' younger brother Chris Bourne would be stepping in for his sibling, with Matt telling the audience: "You might recognise this little guy from the Year 3000 video."
On 15th September, James revealed he wasn't well enough to take part in the first leg of Busted's upcoming tour with McFly.
He released a heartbreaking statement on Instagram, which read: "The VS tour kicks off tomorrow night in Birmingham and as excited as l've been all year for this tour to begin, I'm really sorry to say that over the last 8 days it has become clear that I am not in good enough health to play these shows :-("
"There's a lot of information I still don't have about my condition but my bandmates, management and I are unanimous in deciding that I should focus on the medical stuff for now."
He added: "I really hope I can be in a position to come back further down the line. It's still going to. be an amazing show and I will miss being there! See you all as soon as possible."
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