Paul McCartney has been forced to cancel his Japanese tour due to illness.

The former Beatle is believed to have contracted a virus and has scrapped the two remaining dates on his Out There Japan Tour 2014 - a gig at the Nippon Budokan hall in Tokyo, where the band first during their first Japan tour in 1966, and a concert at Yanmar Stadium in Osaka.

A message on the 71-year-old star's website states that doctors have ordered him to have a "complete rest." Promoters Kyodo Tokyo said in a statement that Paul "will regrettably have to cancel the remaining Japanese shows. Paul is still not feeling better and this cancellation is unavoidable."

The star is reportedly "upset" about the situation as "he has only ever had to reschedule a handful of shows in his entire career" and hates disappointing fans. A statement from Paul on his website reads, "Thank you so much for your kind messages of support. I'm so very touched. Unfortunately my condition has not improved overnight. I was really hoping that I'd be feeling better today. I'm so disappointed and sorry to be letting my fans down."