David Bowie made secret last trip to London to say goodbye to the city he loved after being diagnosed with terminal cancer

David Bowie in New York with his daughter Lexi, and wife Iman; the family went on a secret trip to London in 2014, around the time the star was diagnosed with cancer

David Bowie made a secret final trip to London to show his wife and daughter the sights and pay an emotional farewell to his home city after being diagnosed with cancer, it has emerged.

The iconic rock star, whose death this week shook the world, lived out his final years in New York, with his wife Iman and daughter Lexi, 15, where he lived the life of a family man.

But shortly after being diagnosed with cancer, he took his family to see the city that made him a star, visiting the Tower of London, the London Eye, and the house where he was born in Brixton.

It is thought that he overcame his fear of flying to say his final farewell to the city, where they stayed in the five-star Jumeirah Carlton Tower in Knightsbridge.

However, the trip was kept completely secret from the public - and the star even managed to avoid being recognised while visiting popular tourist sites, despite his and his wife's global fame. 

Bowie was born David Robert Jones on January 8, 1947, in Brixton, south London, to mother Margaret 'Peggy', a waitress, and charity worker Haywood 'John' Jones.

During the trip 18 months ago, Bowie and his family visited the house where he was born, just minutes away from where thousands gathered to pay tribute to 'Brixton's Own Boy' after news of his death.

The Jones family moved to Plaistow Grove in Bromley, South-East London when he was six, which was also on the itinerary during the 2014 trip of the spots that shaped Bowie's early life.

They then visited Foxgrove Road, in Beckenham, where David lived in March 1969 before releasing Space Oddity. Daughter Alexandria, known as Lexi, who was 13 at the time, took a picture of Bowie outside the Beckenham house.

Though his diagnosis was a secret, Bowie's wife Iman revealed details of the trip in an interview in the same year, around the time he was diagnosed.

They flew in on a private jet to Luton airport - better known as a hub for budget getaways - before staying at the Knightsbridge hotel, where rooms start at £300 a night and go up to £1,800. 

Iman said: 'We went this summer. And no one knew we were there. We flew in on the jet to Luton and every day we went and did different things and the press never knew.'

A view of the house in Stansfield Road (centre), in Brixton, south London, where David Bowie was born

The house in Bromley where Bowie lived as a child, which was on his itinerary in 2014

David Bowie (top row, second left) pictured as a pupil at Burnt Ash Primary School in Bromley, Greater London

She talked about how they were able to walk around London anonymously, moving freely without being recognised.

Iman added: 'It's absurd this idea that celebrities can't be anonymous. We even went on the London Eye.

'We queued separately, Lexi had a friend with her and they went with the bodyguard and then we all met on board.'

Asked if the teenager enjoyed visiting the city of her ancestors, Iman said: 'Yes! He took her to Beckenham. They went and took a photo outside the house he grew up in.' 

The family considered moving to London, according to the supermodel, and even bought a house there, but ended up staying in New York instead. 

In his young life in London, Bowie formed a number of bands and led a group calling himself Davy Jones, later changing his name to David Bowie to avoid confusion with the Davy Jones from the Monkees.

The name was said to be inspired by a knife developed by the 19th century American pioneer Jim Bowie. 

The house in Stansfield Road is just a few minutes from where thousands of people gathered to pay tribute to Bowie in the main square in Brixton

Gleeful: These pictures may be the final ones ever taken of David Bowie. The images of the star beaming at the camera and looking dapper in a black fedora hat and suit were posted to his website two days before his death

He decided to set out on his own as a solo artist, releasing three singles for Pye Records and his debut album, The World Of David Bowie.

But the records did not achieve the huge success he would go on to experience and he retreated to a Buddhist monastery in Scotland in 1967.

After returning to London he started arts troupe Feathers in 1968.

As the group eventually separated, he helped create the Beckenham Arts Lab in 1969 before releasing the hit Space Oddity on July 11 that year, his first UK number one.

A string of albums followed before 1972's The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars made him an international star.

As a Seventies superstar, he trumpeted to the press that he was gay at a time when even Elton John was still in the closet, then amended it to bisexual. Many have enjoyed speculating – as his first wife Angie once did – that David and Mick Jagger (above) were lovers

David Bowie outside Bromley Registry office on March 20 1970 after marrying Angie Barnett (right), seen here with her mother

In March 1970, he married Angie in a Bromley Registry Office and the pair had a son, Zowie Bowie — a film director now known as Duncan Jones.

A decade later, he split from his wife, reportedly over rumours about his sexuality. 

Angie, who is currently a contestant on Celebrity Big Brother, has not spoken to the singer for nearly 40 years.

Bowie moved to New York to live with his family in 1993 but he was never forgotten in London, where thousands gathered to pay tribute to 'Brixton's own boy' the day his death was announced.

Fans laid flowers down by a mural devoted to the rockstar, who was propelled to international stardom after launching his career in London, and has performed with and written for some of Britain's most respected musicians, including Queen, Elton John, and John Lennon.