Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher has become a father after wife Meg Mathews gave birth to a baby girl, Anais, in a London hospital.

The baby was born at 1317 GMT at the Portland Hospital, and weighed 7lb 2oz. The birth was induced - the child was not due for another two weeks.

A spokesman said Mathews, 33, and the child were "doing just fine". The baby is named after the French author Anais Nin.

Gallagher, 32, had been at the hospital throughout, along with his mother Peggy, Meg's mother Chris, and the couple's housekeeper.

He told reporters: "It was that big that the doctor said it was best to take it out before it got any bigger."

Gallagher said the baby has blonde hair and blue eyes and looks like his wife - adding he burst into tears during the birth.

"I'm still shaking. I thought there was going to be lots of screaming and shouting all the way through, but there wasn't. Everything's worked out as we hoped it would."

Gallagher said of his wife: "It's just like she has been shopping. She looks fantastic - she doesn't even look like she's had a baby.

"You feel a bit of an idiot standing there but once it's happened it's the best thing ever."

He said Mathews would probably be staying in hospital until the weekend, but they hoped to be able to attend the Mike Tyson-Julius Francis fight in Manchester on Saturday.

After the birth, Gallagher went straight to a nearby pub to get himself a pint of Guinness.

He explained: "They were all drinking champagne and I don't like champagne, so I came in here."

The birth comes four months after brother and band-mate Liam Gallagher's wife Patsy Kensit gave birth to their first child, Lennon Francis.

Since marrying Gallagher in Las Vegas in June 1997, Mathews, a professional party organiser, has become a celebrity in her own right alongside Gallagher.

A fixture of London's celebrity party circuit, she had her own column in the Sunday Times for a short while.

Before the birth, she announced she had been circuit training and sticking to a healthy diet.

The couple first met in 1994, when she worked at Oasis' then-label, Creation, organising after-show parties.

She left Creation in 1997 to form her own company, 2 Active, with close friend Fran Cutler, who was also at the birth.