Jimmy Barnes hospitalised after Dunedin concert, postpones Australia shows

The Australian rock star was hospitalised after finishing his New Zealand tour in Dunedin earlier this week, forcing him to cancel upcoming shows once again to prioritise his health.

Less than a year after Jimmy Barnes underwent emergency heart surgery to stop the spread of a dangerous bacterial infection, the Scottish-born Australian musician revealed he’s been hospitalised after experiencing “unbearable” pain following his show in Dunedin on July 31.

The singer has just finished the last concert in his Hell of a Time tour’s New Zealand leg.

Barnes, 68, shared a post on Instagram on August 3, which included a selfie of him and his wife Jane Mahoney while he lay in a hospital bed.

Revealing his sudden hospitalisation in a lengthy post for his 234,000 Instagram followers, Barnes said that he would be postponing the rest of his shows scheduled throughout August and September in Australia after doctors advised he would need to undergo a “remedial medical procedure” on his hip.

The singer wrote: “I’ve got some bad news unfortunately.

“I had a twinge in my hip when I was leaving Dunedin on Thursday morning and by late last night the pain was unbearable so I went off to hospital.

“The doctors have recommended a remedial medical procedure ASAP followed by some physio to address the issue. These doctors don’t muck around! Providing all goes to plan, I’m expected to make a full recovery in six weeks.

However, as a result of this unexpected surgery my August and September solo shows will all be impacted.”

Barnes was scheduled to begin the Australian leg of his tour on Monday, kicking off the first of two shows in Wyong, New South Wales.

He then planned to stop in Toowoomba, Thirroul and Canberra for shows before playing at the Sydney Opera House.

Barnes followed up by ensuring fans that his tour plans would be revised, acknowledging the disruption it caused while recognising the need for him to recover.

“Ticket holders will be contacted with further info in the coming days once we have new plans in place.

“As you know, I hate to let anyone down, but I’m also never going to compromise the quality of my gigs.

“I apologise for the inconvenience this will cause everyone – I HATE moving shows! - but thank you for understanding.”

Fans wished Barnes a “speedy recovery” in the comments, with one telling Barnes that his health is “the most important thing you should be concentrating on at the moment”.

“Gosh Jimmy! You can’t get a break right now can you? You must always put your health and family first. Your fans will wait....” wrote one user.

“Just rest and get well my darling dadda [pink hearts emoji],” commented Barnes’ daughter Ella-May on his post.

Jane has since shared an update, writing: "Hi everybody, It’s @jane13barnes here to thank you once again for all your messages of support for our Jimmy. You are an incredible on line community of family, friends and followers who offer up your kindness and thoughtfulness during trying times like these."

"Jimmy is out of ICU and recovering well. I brought in some healing chicken soup and chocolate chip cookies for afternoon tea, a bit of home always helps hospital days."

"Our kids always around watching over us. Full of Love."

Barnes’ sudden hospitalisation marks the Working Class Man singer’s second major health scare in the past year, as well as the second operation on his hip since December 2022.

In December 2023, Barnes revealed that he was heading in for emergency open heart surgery after a bacterial pneumonia infection had spread from his lungs to his heart.

After his surgery, the Aussie rock star - who was originally born in Glasgow but moved to Australia at the age of 5 - informed supporters in an Instagram update that the surgery was successful and he was poised to make a full recovery.

Barnes also underwent major surgery on his hip in December 2022, which was done to ease years of chronic pain.

He told fans at the time that after nearly 50 years of “jumping off PAs and stomping around stages”, the problem had “caught up” on him and he needed to do something to fix the “constant and severe pain.”

He has since claimed to have made a full recovery from the surgery.

- Written by the NZ Herald and republished here with edits and permission.