London, Jan 30 (ANI): English singer Elaine Paige has apologised for calling 'Britain's Got Talent' star Susan Boyle a virus.

Paige had labelled singer-fan Boyle as "virus who had spread across the world in a nanosecond."

She suggested that the 48-year-old Scottish singer had not earned her place in the music industry as she had forfeited years of "working hard and experience."

However, Paige now says she did not mean to cause offence - as she is one of Boyle's biggest fans.

"I wasn't referring to Susan herself (when I called her a virus); I was referring to the speed of her fame spreading as fast as a worldwide viral marketing campaign," the Daily Express quoted her as saying.

"I am a huge supporter of Susan Boyle and admire what she has achieved.

"I have always said it's very hard for someone to be fast-tracked to stardom without any prior experience - I know this as it happened to me when Evita (the musical) opened and I found it extremely difficult in the beginning.

"Today, of course, it's much harder with the phenomenon of the internet - Facebook, YouTube etc - it seems it only takes minutes for fame to spread around the world - and that's why I used the word 'virus'," she added. (ANI)