****** understands that veteran singer and godfather of rocksteady Alton Ellis is currently battling for life in a London Hospital.

According to our European correspondent the singer was rumoured to have died last night sending shockwaves through the entertainment fraternity but checked our team revealed that he was very much alive. However his conditioned had significantly worsen to the point that he's now being kept alive by a life support system.

Last year October Ellis was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph glands and was undergoing chemotherapy. He eventually made somewhat of a recovery and the treatment was halted.

Since then he has returned to the island for a two show stint before returning to the United Kingdom. Alton Ellis is the uncle of famed comedians Owen 'Blacka' Ellis and Ity of the comedic duo Ity and Fancy Cat.

The Internationally acclaimed Godfather of reggae, the king of Rock Steady. Alton Ellis was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and began his career as a dancer at the age of sixteen. After achieving many awards in this field over a two year period, Alton took an interest in singing.

His debut was as a vocal duo named Alton and Eddy. Their first recording on the Coxsone label, 'Muriel', was a major hit in Jamaican recording history. After Eddy left Jamaica to live in America, Alton formed a group named 'Alton and The Flames'. They recorded a large number of hit songs on the Treasure Isle label, including 'Dance Crashers', Girl I've got a Date', 'Rock Steady' and 'Black Mans Pride'.

After three years with Alton and The Flames, Alton launched his career as a solo artist and joined the 'Studio One Label' in 1967. The amount of hits that Alton created during this period is so enormous that to mention them all would be impossible.