PETER Andre has been branded "heartless" by furious fans for promoting a diet brand on Twitter just hours after the bombing in Manchester.

The pop star came under fire after he took to social media this morning to tweet about his campaign with Slimming World – but he has since claimed it was a pre-scheduled tweet.

Peter, 44, shared a message about Slimming World on Twitter early on Tuesday morning, just hours after a nail bomb exploded in the foyer of the Manchester Arena at the end of an Ariana Grande gig, killing 22 people and leaving 50 injured.

He wrote: "I'm so excited to be supporting @SlimmingWorld's 2017 #SWClothesThrow, which raises money for @CR_UK – a charity close to my heart!"

Hours later – seemingly unaware of the promotional tweet – he posted again, asking: "Guys did someone post on my behalf account something about slimming world? Confused 🙁 will check what's happened.

"My only tweet that I sent today was 7 hrs ago about terrible news."

He then clarified what had happened, writing: "My sincere apologies. It was a scheduled tweet by the team. All I'm thinking about today is last nights atrocities."

After the initial Slimming World tweet – since deleted – Pete's fans slammed him for posting an "insensitive" tweet so soon after the attacks.

One wrote: "I think this tweet could have waited Pete," another raged "Seriously? You tweet this? Now?"

A third wrote: "Business as usual Pete! Sickening," and another tweeted: "How heartless!!!"

One more added: "Hmm yeah as long as you are happy today Pete. Forget about the world around you eh?"

Another follower wrote: "And on a lighter note, 22 civilians including children die in a terrorist attack. Wtf ? This couldn't wait ?"

The tweet was posted around 2am, and some fans have pointed out it could have been pushed out automatically if it was scheduled before the attack took place.

Later in the morning, Pete took to Twitter to express his sorrow about the bombing at the pop concert.

He wrote: "So so shocked to hear about Manchester. Beyond belief. Our Thoughts with the victims and their families. Very sad day today."

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He has signed up to help the brand promote its Clothes Throw drive, which raises funds for Cancer Research UK.

At least 22 people were killed and 59 injured when the bomb – said to have been packed with nails and bolts – went off at the venue shortly after Ariana left the stage.

Some of those killed were children who were there to watch the US pop star performing on her UK tour.

Thousands fled after hearing a “massive bang” with crowds of screaming and crying teens rushing from the venue.

Witnesses told how debris was sent flying in the blast in the lobby area as fans made their way to Manchester Victoria train station next door.

Police have since arrested a 23-year-old man in connection with the bombing.

Prime Minister Theresa May called the attack "appalling", and stars including Taylor Swift and Katy Perry have expressed their sorrow over the atrocity.

It led to disruption of today's TV schedule with shows including This Morning, Lorraine and Loose Women all being cancelled to make way for rolling news coverage.

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