Singer Holly Johnson has Aids virus

HOLLY JOHNSON, former lead singer of the pop group Frankie Goes to Hollywood, has revealed that he has the Aids virus, writes John Arlidge.

Mr Johnson, 33, discovered he was HIV positive only a few days before the death last year of Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the rock band Queen. He is the second celebrity this week to reveal that he has the virus. On Sunday, Kenny Everett, a DJ on Capital Gold radio in London, revealed that he was diagnosed HIV-positive four years ago.

In an interview to be published in the Times Magazine, Mr Johnson says he has had 'moments of black despair'. He found out that he had the virus while being treated for Kaposi's sarcoma.

He says: 'I was in such a state of panic . . . for fear of the media. I was afraid . . . they'd say that this person who'd promoted a promiscuous homosexual lifestyle had got his comeuppance.'

Frankie Goes to Hollywood were one of the most successful but short-lived British bands. Their hit Relax remains the second highest-selling single in Britain.