A friend of Lily Allen was kidnapped, bundled into a car boot and held hostage in London for seven days.

The 23-year-old singer, whose father is the actor Keith Allen, revealed details of the extraordinary ordeal last night.

She said her friend, who she would only name as Charlie, was abducted as part of a plot to extort money from his loved ones.

At last night's GQ Men of the Year Awards, Lily Allen revealed her friend Charlie was kidnapped and locked in a car boot for five days until police foiled the abduction

But the kidnappers were foiled by the Metropolitan Police.

Miss Allen spoke of the drama as she hosted the GQ Men Of The Year Awards in London.

As celebrities and guests poured into the ceremony, Miss Allen said: 'I just want to thank the Met Police. They did an incredible job.

'He was in a car boot being driven around London before he was found. It was all over money.'

Charlie is believed to come from an upper-middle class home and lives in an upmarket part of West London.

The incident began on 2 August when armed robbers entered a sports shop in West London and stole clothing. 

They also grabbed the 20-year-old shop assistant and his co-work and bundled them into a car outside the shop.

They were then held hostage elsewhere in the city for seven days.

The kidnappers issued ransom demands to their families for £75,000.

Seven days later the hostages were found by police handcuffed, wearing black plastic bags and with their heads covered, but they were physically unhurt. It is unclear whether the ransom was paid.

Six men have been arrested in connection with the incident. Four have been charged with conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to blackmail and false imprisonment.

A fifth man has been charged with two offences of kidnap and one offence of robbery. The sixth man has been released on bail pending further inquiries.

For last night's awards ceremony, Miss Allen wore a billowing, strapless taupe dress with a sash and petticoat in a matching shade of blue.

But the flowing skirts of the metallic Dolce & Gabbana gown gave her some difficulties as she reached the red carpet outside the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

At times it looked as if she was struggling to stay on her feet. But she regained her composure before making her entrance. Chopard jewellery was set off against her hair, which has recently returned to a darker shade.

The singer had a Number One hit with her song Smile in 2006.

She has since had hits with Alfie, a song about her little brother, and collaborated with producer Mark Ronson for a cover version of Oh My God, by The Kaiser Chiefs.

Earlier this year she had a miscarriage after returning home from a holiday in the Maldives with her boyfriend Ed Simons, 37, frontman with DJ duo The Chemical Brothers. She was three months pregnant at the time.

In May she announced she was delaying the release of her second album until January, fuelling rumours that she was afraid of rivalry with newcomer Katy Perry, whose song I Kissed A Girl went to the top of the charts.