Bowie, 67, defies age to land Brit award

David Bowie has become the oldest winner of a Brit Award, taking the best British male solo artist prize at the age of 67.

Supermodel Kate Moss wore one of his Ziggy Stardust outfits to collect the prize as Bowie chose to stay at home in New York rather than attend the event. It was his first Brit for 18 years.

He previously won the prize 30 years ago, and the only other win he has notched up during his long career was an honorary title in 1996 for his outstanding contribution to music.

Moss arrived secretly, avoiding the red carpet, to surprise guests at the event. And when she arrived on stage the 40-year-old model was wearing an outfit which Bowie himself made famous at one of the most celebrated stages of his career.

Singer Ellie Goulding was named best British female star to land the first prize of the night. The 27-year-old, who scored her first number one last year with Burn, took the trophy four years after collecting her first Brit.

The ceremony is the biggest night in the British music calendar with dozens of stars and thousands of fans gathered at the O2 Arena in London.

Goulding collected her prize from Prince and his group 3RDEYEGIRL.

Arctic Monkeys opened the show with a performance of their track R U Mine? with flaming letters spelling out the name of their fifth album AM. The band were later named best British group, the third time they have taken the title after previous triumphs in 2007 and 2008.

Frontman Alex Turner joked: “That’s 15 quid we put on One Direction to win down the drain.”

They collected the award from Lily Allen, sporting a yellow pony tail, who experienced a less than slick moment during the glitzy awards when she was unsure what to do when it came to reading out the shortlist, asking: “Do I just go straight into it?”

One Direction suffered a toilet mishap when Harry Styles was still visiting the loo while the rest of his group was collecting the band’s global success award.

When they took the stage as a four-piece, the group’s Liam Payne asked: “Has anyone seen the curly haired lad? I don’t know where you are Harry.”

Styles then came hurtling up a runway to the stage and told the audience: “I’m really sorry I was having a wee. Toilets are ages away. What did we win?

“A massive thank you to all our fans,” he added.

Corden then poked up at the star’s Lothario reputation, adding: Having a wee? He couldn’t even wait ’til the end of the show.”

Performers also included Beyonce who took to the stage alone wearing a green sequinned, floor-length dress to sing her track XO.