The 46-year-old is serving a 29-year jail term for multiple sexual offences, including serious crimes against young children and babies.

According to the Mirror, the paedophile is in a "life-threatening condition" following the incident at HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire.

The newspaper reports he was taken hostage by three other inmates on Saturday morning and was freed by prison officers six hours later.

"There are fears he could die. If he survives, he'll have been very lucky," the source told them.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "Police are investigating an incident which took place on Saturday at HMP Wakefield.

"We are unable to comment further while the police investigate."

Watkins was sentenced in December 2013, after admitting 13 sex offences, including the attempted rape of a fan's baby.

He also encouraged a second fan to abuse her child during a webcam chat and secretly stashed child pornography videos, some of which he had made himself.

At the time, police described him as a "committed, organised paedophile".

Having found fame in Lostprophets, Watkins was arrested after his Pontypridd home was searched on orders of a drug warrant in September 2012.

A large number of computers, mobile phones and storage devices were seized during the search.

When sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court, the singer was told he was being given an extended sentence - and a judge said his crimes "plumbed new depths of depravity".

Watkins will serve two-thirds of the term behind bars before being released. He will serve an additional six years on licence.

After being caught with a mobile phone behind bars in 2019, he told a court that he was locked up with "murderers, mass murderers, rapists, paedophiles, serial killers - the worst of the worst".