MacColl's solo career started when she split from punk band Drug Addix

The daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl, she is best known for her 1987 Christmas hit with The Pogues, Fairytale of New York, and the hit single There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis.

Once in punk band Drug Addix, her first solo release was They Don't Know, in 1979.

It failed to reach the charts, but became a hit some years later when it was covered by Tracey Ullman.

MacColl's other hits include a cover of Billy Bragg's song A New England, and a version of The Kinks' track Days.

She also sang backing vocals for acts including Talking Heads, Simple Minds and Robert Plant.

Her last album, Tropical Brainstorm, was a tribute to Cuban music, which had influenced her throughout the 1990s.

BBC Radio 2 has postponed the broadcast of a documentary series she had made about Cuban music, due to start on Wednesday.

The singer spoke about how she would spend this Christmas "with my family and friends" in BBC promotional material to accompany the series.

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