UPDATE: BBC blasts Sir Rod Stewart’s claims he was banned from singing Irish song. Read their response here.

CELTIC-daft rocker Sir Rod Stewart has claimed the BBC banned him from singing Irish ballad ‘Grace’ on the radio - because it was “anti-English.”

The 73-year-old singer made the claim in a recent interview with Billboard, ahead of a live set on The Radio 2 Breakfast Show on Friday.

Sir Rod revealed: “They won’t let me sing ‘Grace’ because of its Irish, anti-English overtones in the song.

READ MORE: Pub stripped of licence after complaints about 'pro-IRA' singing

“Forget about it, it’s one of the greatest love songs ever written.

“The guy goes to his death 15 minutes the next morning after he’s been married and I can’t sing [it].”

The song tells the story of Grace Gifford, an Irish artist and cartoonist who was active in the Republican movement.

READ MORE: Rod Stewart sings 'Grace' during opening night of Las Vegas residency

She married her fiancé Joseph Plunkett only a few hours before he was executed for his part in the 1916 Easter Rising.

It contains the lyrics: “Oh Grace just hold me in your arms and let this moment linger / They’ll take me out at dawn and I will die / With all my love I place this wedding ring upon your finger / There won’t be time to share our love for we must say goodbye.”

READC MORE: Rangers boss Steven Gerrard gushes over wife with touching birthday message

Also asked about his thoughts when he first heard the song, Sir Rod touched on his undying love for his beloved club.

He continued: “Celtic is the football team I support, and Celtic was formed by an Irishman in Glasgow in 1888 to raise money for the Irish to come over after the Potato Famine, so I heard the Celtic supporters singing it about three years ago.”