Shanghai resident and British expatriate Gary Bryant had to suffer more than a bruised ego after a disastrous attempt to sing karaoke in a London bar.

Bryant, 28, has spent the last year living in Shanghai, where he is a regular visitor to the Partyworld KTV on Wulumuqi Lu. Bryant's friends in Shanghai were quick to praise his drunken renditions of "Hotel California" and "Take me to your heart". Over time, Bryant began to believe the compliments about his signing voice were genuine, and began to refer to himself at work as the "Kareoke King". On returning to the UK for his Christmas break, Bryant decided to attend a karaoke evening at a Central London bar.

The reception at the open-mike evening in Henry's Bar and Grill in London's fashionable Soho district was less generous. "Get off the stage you fat bastard, you can't sing" was among the more printable of the heckles.

"Who the **** are Michael Learns To Rock?" bouncer Dave Smith was heard to remark whilst throwing a sobbing Bryant into a back alleyway.