Former Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher is to become a father for the third time, it's been reported.

Gallagher's girlfriend Sara MacDonald is understood to have fallen pregnant with their second baby during a holiday in South Africa.

The guitarist, who has another daughter Anais, ten, from a previous relationship, is said to be “thrilled to bits”.

Friends have apparently joked that the pair should call the baby Nelson after Nelson Mandela due to where it was conceived.

"Noel and Sara are over the moon,” a source told The Sun newspaper.

“They're so happy that Donovan will have a little partner in crime to play with. Their family is complete.

"Their pals have been joking that Nelson is a frontrunner on names as they think the baby was conceived on a holiday to South Africa."

Meanwhile, Gallagher is due to perform the first of two gigs at the Royal Albert Hall in London later as part of the Teenager Cancer Trust gig series.

They mark Gallagher's first return to the stage since he quit Oasis last year following long-standing differences with his brother, Liam.

(by Jason Gregory)