Image copyright PA/Getty Image caption Natalie Portman disputed Moby's claims that they had dated

Moby has cancelled a string of appearances after he was criticised for claims he made about actress Natalie Portman in his latest book.

The US musician had been due to visit the UK in June to speak at various events to promote his second autobiography Then It Fell Apart.

But they have now been pulled, and Moby has told fans on Instagram he's "going to go away for a while".

It comes after Portman disputed his claims that they used to date.

A message on his website read: "Moby is cancelling all upcoming public appearances for the foreseeable future. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause."

They include dates at the Manchester Literary Festival, Earth London, Dublin's Liberty Hall and the Hay Festival.

In an Instagram message titled "last post", Moby wrote: "I want to apologize again, and to say clearly that all of this has been my own fault.

"I am the one who released the book without showing it to the people I wrote about. I'm the one who posted defensively and arrogantly. I'm the one who behaved inconsiderately and disrespectfully, both in 2019 and in 1999.

"There is obviously no one else to blame but me. Thank you and I'm sorry."

'Truly inconsiderate'

In his latest memoir, which was published earlier this month, Moby said Portman asked him out after a show in 2001.

"I was a bald binge drinker and Natalie Portman was a beautiful movie star. But here she was in my dressing room, flirting with me," he wrote.

But the Oscar-winning actress said the description was inaccurate, calling Moby a "creep" who overstepped the mark.

Speaking to Harper's Bazaar, she said: "I was surprised to hear that he characterised the very short time that I knew him as dating, because my recollection is a much older man being creepy with me when I just had graduated high school.

"He said I was 20; I definitely wasn't. I was a teenager. I had just turned 18. That he used this story to sell his book was very disturbing to me."

Moby then apologised to Portman on Instagram, adding that it was "truly inconsiderate" of him not to have informed her and others about their inclusion in his memoir beforehand.

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