Neil Diamond has thanked fans for support

The 77-year-old music legend announced earlier this week he was cancelling the remaining dates of his ’50th Anniversary Tour’ in Australia and New Zealand on medical advice after the onset of the disease made it “difficult to travel and perform on a large scale basis”, and he and his wife Katie, 46, have been cheered by the news that many of his disappointed fans have kindly donated their ticket refunds to charity.

Katie tweeted: “Wow, I’ve received a bunch of messages from people in Aus & NZ who are donating their ticket refunds to good causes: Parkinson’s research, animal rescue groups, fire victim funds, etc.

“My heart is so full of joy to see this silver lining. Faith in humanity = restored. Thank you!”

Neil then replied: “This makes me smile. Thank you. Thank you to everyone for your outpouring of love and support. It makes a difference.”

The ‘America’ singer announced in a statement earlier this week that he was retiring from touring, with “reluctance and disappointment”, after being stricken by the degenerative condition.

“It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honoured to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years.

“My sincerest apologies to everyone who purchased tickets and were planning to come to the upcoming shows.”

Despite hanging up his tour microphone, the ‘Sweet Caroline’ hitmaker has vowed to continue writing and recording music for a “long time to come”.

He added: “I plan to remain active in writing, recording and other projects for a long time to come.

“My thanks goes out to my loyal and devoted audiences around the world. You will always have my appreciation for your support and encouragement. This ride has been ‘so good, so good, so good’ thanks to you.”