Robert Plant turned down an offer of £500 million offered by Sir Richard Branson to reunite and tour with Led Zeppelin for 35 concerts which would take place in three cities:

"They have tried to talk [Plant] round but there is no chance," a source said. "His mind is made up and that’s that."

"Jimmy, John and Jason signed up immediately. It was a no-brainer for them but Robert asked for 48 hours to think about it. When he said no and ripped up the paperwork he had been given, there was an enormous sense of shock."

Branson is a lifelong fan of the group and was allegedly very interested in funding the tour, offering to fly the band between venues. The band last reunited in 2007 for the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert at the O2 Arena in London.

But according to Robert Plant's publicist, the story is "rubbish" (via UltimateClassicRock).

Update: Richard Branson sets the record straight.

Featured image: Led Zeppelin at Honolulu Airport in 1969. Photo by Robert Knight/Redferns. Via The Times.