Julie Andrews has spoken candidly about how she will no longer be able to sing because of a botched operation on her vocal chords.

The Sound of Music star, whose voice used to span four octaves, said that despite her best efforts the 1997 procedure has caused permanent damage.

Speaking in frank terms she said it had 'left me without a voice' - and revealed that she can now only hit bass notes.

British-born Andrews, who made her Broadway debut at the age of 19, had gone under the knife to remove non-cancerous throat nodules.

But when the procedure left her unable to sing professionally and emotionally devastated, she sued the New York surgeon who carried it out, later reaching a settlement.