Max George, a member of the boyband the Wanted, has revealed he has had a pacemaker fitted after an operation to address a 2:1 heart block.

George, 36, who announced he had been taken to hospital due to “issues with my heart”, earlier in the month, said the pacemaker was “the best Christmas present”.

He wrote on Instagram: “Say hello to my little friend! Given the last 10 days, this is the best Christmas present I could’ve ever wished for.

“Pacemaker is in. Operation took around two and a half hours. The main issue being some of my veins had collapsed where the wires were meant to go … But the surgeons and nurses at the NHS have been incredible. I owe everything to them.

“The surgeon kindly put my pacemaker just underneath a very special tattoo of mine … So I’m sure it’s being looked after. Few more tests to do due to inflamed lymph nodes on my lungs, but that’ll be easy work! Time to rest and then tackle life full on once again.

“Thank you for all your support. It’s meant a hell of a lot to myself and my family.”

On 16 December George said he had “a 2:1 block in my heart” and would be undergoing heart surgery “way quicker than the doctors first thought”.

He previously said he was “hoping (for a) pacemaker”. The implanted devices, which regulate heart rhythm, save lives by generating an electric current.

The singer shared a photo of his scar, which sits just below a “special tattoo” on the left side of his chest that says 04/08/1988, in reference to the birthday of his late bandmate Tom Parker, who died in 2022. Parker died at the age of 33 after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.

George has appeared in the US musical series Glee and competed on Strictly Come Dancing, where he got to know his future girlfriend – the former EastEnders actor Maisie Smith – in 2020.