SIR ELTON JOHN AND David Furnish have announced the arrival of their son, born to a surrogate mother in California.

In a statement to Us Magazine, the couple said they were “overwhelmed with happiness and joy at this very special moment”.

The baby boy born on Christmas Day has been named Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John.

John and Furnish said they will not be disclosing any further details relating to the surrogate mother out of respect for her privacy.

In September, Elton John said he wanted to adopt a baby boy from Ukraine after meeting the child during a visit to an orphanage. The Guardian reported that the singer was visiting the orphanage with his Aids foundation and performed for the children.

At that time, John said: “David and I have always talked about adoption, David always wanted to adopt a child and I always said ‘no’ because I am 62 and I think because of the travelling I do and the life I have, maybe it wouldn’t be fair for the child.”

He said that the visit to Ukraine had caused him to change his mind on the issue.

He was not able to adopt the 14-month-old boy he and Furnish met in Ukraine because of his age and because prospective parents must be married (the couple were married in a civil partnership ceremony in 2005, but a civil union is not recognised in Ukraine).