Russell Brand On Board for 'Three Lions' Rerelease

Just in case you were worried a major football tournament involving England might pass by without a new version of the Lightning Seeds' ageless 'Three Lions' being released, fear not! Plans for the latest edition of the tune are gathering pace. Rumour has it that big-haired comedian -- and long-time West Ham United fan -- Russell Brand has contributed vocals to a rerecording of the Britpop-era hit, the Sun has reported.

Port Vale partisan Robbie Williams is also supposed to be involved in the latest interpretation of the hugely popular anthem, which officially backed England's 1996 hosting of the European Championships and was re-released to cash in on the team's bid for the 1998 World Cup and the subsequent 2002 and 2006 tournaments.

No word yet on how Brand and Williams' vocals will augment the original contributions of Broudie and comedian co-writers Frank Skinner and David Baddiel, but Spinner humbly suggests that Brand's passable singing voice (at least on the evidence of his turn in 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall') might be an ideal substitute for Baddiel's more grating tones. The comedian's flat-as-a-pancake "and all those oh-so-neeearrrs" was at least as painful as 44 years of pre-final tournament exits.