Geri Horner "pretends" the late George Michael is "still here somewhere close"

She said: "The comic Ronnie Corbett passed away last year and I saw his daughter on TV saying she copes by thinking her dad is just in the other room, and I've tried to do the same with George.

"If you don't see someone every day you can kind of do that. You can pretend they are still there somewhere close and it helps."

And the former Spice Girl has branded the 'Faith' singer as her "rock", as he was always there to help her in times of hardship.

She told the Daily Star Sunday newspaper: "In tough times you find out two things; what you are made of and who your friends are. And that was George to me. He was always the one who was there for me no matter what. He was there when I left the Spice Girls.

"When I had my first child I lived in my house for nine months. If I was confused about anything I could call him up. He was a rock."

Meanwhile, on June 23, Geri will release 'Angels in Chains' in dedication to George, in what will be her first single in 12 years.

In a statement about the track, Geri said: "When I first heard the sad news of his passing, I was nine months pregnant with my son Monty and I was full of emotions. I didn't know quite what to do with my feelings so I put it in a song, which became 'Angels in Chains'. I feel very blessed to have the opportunity to work on this record with Chris Porter and the same team George had hand-picked for his own projects.

"I am first and foremost a George Michael fan, so to be in the same studio with these amazingly gifted artists who have put their stamp of so many of my favourite records was a real privilege for me.

"In the process I found how healing making this record had been not only for me but also for everyone involved. This is our way of saying goodbye to our friend and music idol, and I hope George's fans enjoy this as much as we have making it."