Noel Gallagher quits British rock group Oasis

The future of British rock group Oasis was plunged into doubt yesterday after lead guitarist Noel Gallagher announced he was quitting because he can no longer work with his brother Liam.

"It's with some sadness and great relief to tell you that I quit Oasis tonight," Noel said in a brief statement posted on the band's website last Friday.

"People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer."

It brings an end to months of speculation about the future of Oasis, which was at the vanguard of the Britpop music wave of the mid-1990s and went on to become one of the most commercially successful British bands in years.

Lead singer Liam and Noel, his older brother and the main songwriter, have had a notoriously stormy relationship since the band formed in 1991, but rumours grew in recent days that their differences had become insurmountable.

"I think this is pretty major. Noel's a proud person, he won't go back on it. And he knows he could make a successful solo album," said Alan McGee, the founder of Creation Records and the man who originally signed the band. He said it was a "really, really sad day" but predicted that they would work together again "eventually".