According to new reports, David Bowie’s body has been secretly cremated in New York soon after his death.

The star, who closely guarded his privacy in his final years, wanted to avoid a funeral service.

In line with David Bowie’s wishes, no family or friends were present at the ceremony, the Daily Mirror reported.

David Bowie died of cancer on January 10 at the age of 69.

The singer had released a new album, Blackstar, on his birthday, just two days earlier – which has been retrospectively interpreted as his epitaph.

Although the record features lyrics such as “Look up here, I’m in heaven,” its producer Tony Visconti said David Bowie had written and demo-ed five new songs in recent weeks.

Speaking to Rolling Stone magazine, Tony Visconti said David Bowie had called him about a week before his death and “at that late stage, he was planning the follow-up to Blackstar”.

Tony Visconti will be one of the musicians performing at a memorial concert for David Bowie at New York’s Carnegie Hall in March.

The Music of David Bowie had originally been billed as a tribute show, with artists including Cyndi Lauper and The Roots also performing, but the event will now give fans the opportunity to mourn.

Tributes will also be paid at next month’s Brit Awards, with a performance celebrating the “extraordinary life and work of one of our greatest icons”.

Meanwhile, Blackstar is set to become David Bowie’s first No 1 album in the US, as sales surged after news of his death broke on January 11.