Alex Turner has blamed nerves for his bizarre acceptance speech at the Brit Awards.

The Arctic Monkeys frontman sparked speculation he was drunk when he accepted the award for Best British Album at the end of the ceremony - the band's second gong of the night - by making a long and rambling speech about the rock 'n' roll.

Alex, 28, told the Mail on Sunday: "In public I'm a quiet guy, so doing anything in front of lots of people always makes me nervous.

"I'm known for my music, not how well I deliver a speech.

"People always assume if you're in a band that's been on the scene for ages that you're going to be really confident, but that's not true."

The Arctic Monkeys had a double win of Best British Album and Best Group for the third time.

Alex's acceptance speech at the end of the ceremony appeared to be claiming victory for a rock and roll over pop music.

He said: "That rock'n'roll, eh? That rock'n'roll, it just won't go away. It might hibernate from time to time and sink back into the swamp...

"But it's always waiting there, just around the corner, ready to make its way back through the sludge, and smash through the glass ceiling, looking better than ever.

"Yeah, that rock'n'roll. It seems like it's faded away sometimes but, uh, it will never die. And there's nothing you can do about it."

He ended his speech by declaring: "Invoice me for the microphone if you need to," and then simply dropping his mic on the floor.