Elton John 'overwhelmed with happiness' at arrival of second baby via surrogate

Sir Elton John says his family is now complete after he became a parent for the second time.

He and partner David Furnish said they were "overwhelmed with happiness" at the birth of Elijah Joseph Daniel Furnish-John.

The new arrival was born in Los Angeles on Friday, weighing in at 8lb 4oz, via a surrogate mother, according to Hello!.

The couple already have a two-year-old boy called Zachary.

They told Hello!: "Both of us have longed to have children, but the reality that we now have two sons is almost unbelievable.

"The birth of our second son completes our family in a most precious and perfect way. It is difficult to fully express how we are feeling at this time; we are just overwhelmed with happiness and excitement."

The baby shares his middle name, Daniel, with one of Sir Elton's 1970s hit singles.

Last week the couple's UK spokesman issued a statement to say reports that they were parents again were "false".

It was issued just hours before the birth after news began circulating in the US that a child had been born over the Christmas period.

Sir Elton, 65, and film producer Furnish have been in a relationship for almost 20 years and have been civil partners since 2005.

PA